fornia 


y, 


presented  to  the 
UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 
UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
SAN  DIEGO 

by 


MRS 


PA 
(*\\\ 

,/vn 

\n 


fttorrt'g  ant>  ^organ's  Hatfn  S?ertEg 

EDITED  FOR   USE  IN  SCHOOLS   AND   COLLEGES 
UNDER   THE   SUPERVISION    OF 

EDWARD    P.    MORRIS,   L.H.D., 

PROFESSOR    OF   LATIN   IN   VALE   UNIVERSITY 
AND 

MORRIS    H.    MORGAN,   PH.D., 

NiOFESSOR   OF  CLASSICAL   PHILOLOGY   IN    HARVARD   UNIVERSITY 


VOLUMES    OF   THE   SERIES 

Essentials  of  Latin  for  Beginners.  Henry  C.  Pearson,  Teacher* 
College,  New  York. 

A  School  Latin  Grammar.      Morris  H.   Morgan,   Harvard  University. 

A  First  Latin  Writer.     M.  A.  Abbott,  Groton  School. 

Connected    Passages    for    Latin    Prose    Writing.      Maurice    W. 

Mather,  formerly  of   Harvard  University,  and   Arthur  L.  Wheeler,  Bryn 

Mawr  College. 

Caesar.  Episodes  from  the  Gallic  and  Civil  Wars.  Maurice 
W.  Mather,  formerly  of  Harvard  University. 

Cicero.     Ten  Orations  and  Selected  Letters.    J.  Remsen  Bishop, 
Eastern   High  School,  Detroit,  Frederick  A.  King,  Hughes  High  School, 
Cincinnati,  and  Wilbur  Helm,  Evanston  Academy  of  Northwestern  Uni- 
versity. 
Six  Orations. 

Selections  from  Latin  Prose  Authors  for  Sight  Reading.  Susan 
Braley  Franklin  and  Ella  Catherine  Greene,  Miss  Baldwin's  School,  Bryn 
Mawr. 

Cicero.     Cato  Maior.      Frank  G.  Moore,   Columbia  University. 
Cicero.      Laelius  de  Amicitia.      Clifton  Price,  University  of  California. 

Selections  from  Livy.     Harry  E.  Burton,  Dartmouth  College. 

Horace.      Odes  and  Epodes.      Clifford  H.  Moore,  Harvard  University. 

Horace.      Satires.      Edward  P.   Morris,   Yale   University. 

Horace.      Satires  and  Epistles.     Edward  P.   Morris,  Yale  University. 

Horace.     Odes,  Epodes,  and  Carmen  Saeculare,  Moore.    Satires 

and  Epistles,  Morris.      In  one  volume. 
Tibullus.     Kirby  F.  Smith,  Johns  Hopkins  University. 
Lucretius.     William  A.  Merrill,  University  of  California. 

Latin    Literature    of    the    Empire.       Alfred    Gudeman,    formerly    of 
the  University  of  Pennsylvania. 
Vol.  I.      Prose  :   Velleius  to  Boethius 
Vol.  II.     Poetry  :   Pseudo-Vergiliana  to  Cbudiaaus 

Selections  from  the  Public  and  Private  Law  of  the  Romans. 
James  J.  Robinson,  Hotchkiss  School. 

Others  to  be  announced  later. 


HORACE 
THE    SATIRES 


WITH  INTRODUCTION  AND  NOTES 
BY 

EDWARD   P.    MORRIS 

PROFESSOR  OF  LATIN  IN  YALE  COLLEGE 


NEW  YORK-:. CINCINNATI.:- CHICAGO 

AMERICAN     BOOK    COMPANY 


COPYRIGHT,  1909,  BY 
EDWARD  P.  MORRIS  AND  MORRIS  H.  MORGAN 

F.NTBRKD   AT   STATIONERS*    HALL,    LONDON 


MORRIS.      HORACE     SAT1KU. 
W.  t    7 


PREFACE 

THIS  book  will  be  found  to  differ  from  the  many  excel- 
lent editions  of  the  Satires  accessible  to  American  students 
chiefly  in  the  emphasis  which  I  have  desired  to  place  upon 
the  thought  of  Horace,  as  distinguished  from  the  language 
or  the  verse  or  the  allusions.  That  is,  without  denying 
that  Horace  may  be  made  useful  as  the  basis  for  a  study 
of  Roman  life,  and  without  forgetting  that  it  is  absurd  to 
talk  of  studying  the  thought,  if  the  language  is  only  imper- 
fectly understood,  I  have  nevertheless  believed  that  of  all 
the  Latin  writers  read  in  college  Horace  was  the  one  in 
whose  writings  literary  form  could  be  most  interestingly 
studied.  In  the  Satires,  too,  the  connection  of  thought  is 
peculiar  and,  at  first,  difficult  to  follow.  To  meet  this  diffi- 
culty and  to  facilitate  the  understanding  of  each  satire  as 
a  whole,  the  introductions  have  been  made  somewhat  fuller 

than  is  usual 

E.  P.   MORRIS. 


INTRODUCTION 

THE  events  in  the  life  of  Horace  are  known  to  us  from  two 
sources  :  first,  from  an  extract  from  Suetonius,  preserved  in  the 
manuscripts  of  Horace  and  printed  below;  and,  second,  from  the 
many  personal  allusions  in  his  works. 

Quintus  Horatius  Flaccus  was  born  in  Venusia,  a  Roman 
colony  in  the  borderland  between  Lucania  and  Apulia,  on  the 
8th  of  December,  65  B.C.  His  father  was  a  freedman,  that  is, 
he  had  been  a  slave,  but  had  bought  his  freedom  or  had  been 
manumitted,  and  was  engaged  in  some  small  business  in  or 
near  Venusia.  He  was  apparently  of  Italian  stock,  and  in 
character  and  circumstances  he  was  a  man  of  the  older  Roman 
type,  energetic,  prudent,  ambitious.  The  ambition  took,  in 
particular,  the  form  of  a  determination  to  give  to  his  son  the 
best  possible  education  and  opportunities,  —  one  of  many  modern 
touches  in  the  life  of  Horace,  —  and  in  furtherance  of  this  de- 
termination he  brought  the  son  to  Rome  and  placed  him  in  one 
of  the  best  schools  of  the  city.  Somewhere  about  45  B.C. 
Horace  went  to  Athens  —  as  young  men  now  go  to  a  university 
—  to  carry  on  studies  and  hear  lectures  on  rhetoric,  philosophy, 
and  mathematics  ;  this  was  the  ordinary  culmination  of  a  Roman 
higher  education,  and  Horace  at  this  time,  as  probably  also  in 
the  school  in  Rome,  formed  associations  and  friendships  with 
young  men  of  intellectual  tastes  and  of  social  position  somewhat 
higher  than  his  own.  While  he  was  still  a  student  at  Athens, 
not  yet  quite  twenty-one,  the  death  of  Caesar  in  March,  44, 
divided  the  Roman  world  into  two  hostile  camps,  and  when 

7 


INTRODUCTION 

Brutus  came  to  Athens  in  the  late  summer  of  44,  on  his  way  to 
assume  the  govern'orship  of  Macedonia  and  Asia  Minor,  Horace 
abandoned  his  studies  and  accompanied  him  with  the  nominal 
title  of  tribunus  militum.  Of  the  two  years  that  intervened  be- 
tween the  death  of  Caesar  and  the  battle  of  Philippi,  in  42,  there 
is  no  record  except  the  rather  juvenile  seventh  satire  of  the 
First  Book.  It  is  probable  that  his  father  had  died  and  that  the 
property  had  been  lost,  perhaps  confiscated ;  for  when  Horace 
returned  to  Rome  in  41,  he  was  obliged  to  support  himself  by 
taking  a  clerkship  in  the  treasury  department;  here  he  began 
his  career  as  a  writer. 

Behind  these  bare  facts  of  his  early  life  the  temperament  and 
character  of  Horace  were  taking  shape.  The  story  has  in  it 
so  much  that  is  modern  that  we  are  perhaps  in  danger  of  forcing 
.the  analogies,  yet  the  outlines  of  the  process  are  clear.  Horace 
was  a  country  boy,  trained  in  the  prudent  traditions  of  a  quiet 
life ;  his  father  desired  for  him  the  rise  in  station  which  he  had 
himself  only  partially  achieved,  and  sought  it  by  means  of  a 
higher  education  and  more  stimulating  associations  than  a  re- 
mote village  could  afford.  From  the  studies  of  the  university 
the  young  man  was  plunged  into  the  floods  of  civil  war,  following 
the  leadership  of  the  half-mystical  and  wholly  romantic  Brutus. 
He  returned  to  Rome  a  pardoned  rebel ;  the  cause  which  he 
still  believed  to  have  been  the  cause  of  liberty  was  lost;  his  hopes 
of  advancement  in  public  life  were  at  an  end ;  his  father  was 
dead,  his  friends  scattered,  his  property  gone.  Obscure,  disap- 
pointed, perhaps  a  little  embittered,  he  was  to  begin  life  over 
again.  If  this  young  man  seems  a  different  person  from  the  Hor- 
ace whom  we  associate  with  graceful  love  poems  and  the  doctrine 
of  the  golden  mean,  it  is  only  because  we  accept  the  result 
without  following  the  process  which  led  to  it.  For  the  two 
are  identical;  there  is  no  break  in  the  development;  indeed, 
it  is  out  of  precisely  such  material  that  the  mellow  and  penetrat- 
ing commentator  upon  life  is  made,  when  success  and  recogni- 

8 


INTRODUCTION 

tion,  as  well  as  disenchantment  and  difficulty,  have  done  their 
part  in  shaping  his  character. 

It  was  in  the  decade  between  41,  when  he  returned  after 
Philippi,  and  30,  when  at  the  age  of  thirty-five  he  published  the 
Epodes  and  the  Second  Book  of  Satires,  that  his  character  and 
his  life  philosophy  were  matured.  Few  events  are  known  to  us 
out  of  these  years.  In  39  or  38  he  was  introduced  by  Vurgil 
and  Varius  to  Maecenas,  and  in  33  he  received  from  Maecenas 
the  gift  of  the  Sabine  farm,  which  was  in  a  special  sense  his 
home  for  the  rest  of  his  life.  But  the  intimacy  with  the  circle 
of  poets  and  critics  who  were  gathered  about  Maecenas,  greatly 
as  it  stimulated  him,  and  the  lasting  friendship  with  Maecenas 
himself,  with  all  the  resulting  benefits,  were  only  important  in- 
cidents in  his  development;  his  real  life  was  in  his  writings. 
He  began  with  a  group  of  three  satires,  2,  7,  and  8  of  Book  I, 
and  it  was  these  which,  with  some  of  the  Epodes,  brought  him 
to  the  notice  of  Vergil,  and  ultimately  of  Maecenas.  They  are 
plainly  the  work  of  a  young  writer.  The  seventh,  though  it  is 
well  written,  is  trivial ;  the  eighth  is  a  kind  of  burlesque  Priapus- 
poem,  without  wit  or  real  humor,  unpleasantly  personal  and  with 
no  marked  attractiveness  of  style.  Of  the  second  it  must  be 
said  plainly  that  it  is  an  attempt  to  draw  attention  by  jesting 
indecency  ;  there  is  no  other  possible  interpretation  of  the  choice 
of  subject.  On  the  other  hand,  the  style  of  the  seventh  is  good, 
the  eighth  is  better  than  most  poems  of  its  kind,  and  the  second, 
except  in  the  choice  of  subject,  is  the  real  Horace,  ^y  JP  gfy1p 
aqd  handling-,  humorous  and  yet  in  acf^ai'n  waygpriopg  There 
is  enough  of  sharpness  and  even  of  bitterness  in  it  to  explain  the 
criticisms  that  it  brought  upon  the  writer,  and  the  tone  of  the 
next  satire,  4  of  Book  I,  shows  that  Horace  was  himself  aware 
that  the  earlier  satires  needed  defense,  if  not  apology.  But  a 
clear-sighted  critic,  on  the  lookout,  as  the  members  of  the  circle 
of  Maecenas  were,  for  young  men  of  promise,  would  certainly 
have  seen  that  the  writer  of  these  poems  was  a  man  not  to  be 

9 


INTRODUCTION 

neglected.  The  satires  which  followed  the  admission  of  Horace 
to  the  friendship  of  Vergil  and  Varius  and  Maecenas  need  no 
specific  comment  beyond  that  which  will  be  found  in  the  special 
introductions ;  they  are  not  the  work  of  an  obscure  beginner, 
but  of  a  man  tempered  by  association  with  men  of  taste,  mel- 
lowed by  friendly  recognition,  and  already  master  of  an  easy 
style  and  a  sane  and  humorous  philosophy  of  life. 

His  choice  of  satire  as  a  means  of  expression  is  explained  by 
Horace  in  Sat.  i,  10,  40-47  ;  he  says  that  other  fields  —  comedy, 
tragedy,  the  epic,  the  bucolic  —  were  already  occupied,  and  that 
satire  alone  seemed  open  to  him.  But  this  explanation  is  not  to 
be  taken  seriously  ;  the  causes  which  determined  his  choice  were 
deeper,  partly  in  his  own  temperament,  partly  in  the  conditions 
of  his  time.  He  was  by  nature  an  observer  of  men  ;  he  found  in 
the  interplay  of  character  and  circumstance  a  spectacle  of  con- 
stant interest,  and  the  account  which  he  gives  (Sat.  1,4,  105-143) 
of  the  teachings  of  his  father  and  of  his  own  habitual(  attitude, 
however  humorous  the  application  which  he  makes  of  it,  is 
essentially  true.  To  a  man  of  such  a  habit  of  mind  satire,  in 
the  sense  which  Horace  gave  to  the  word,  as  a  good-natured 
commentary,  that  is,  upon  the  follies  and  upon  the  virtues,  too, 
of  the  men  with  whom  he  lived,  was  the  most  natural  vehicle  of 
expression.  In  so  far  as  he  was  inclined  toward  more  serious 
and  emotional  expression,  he  used  at  first  the  half-lyrical  form 
of  the  Epodes,  and  the  absence  of  the  more  profound  feelings 
from  the  Satires  is  to  be  explained  in  part  by  the  fact  that  they 
found  another  outlet  in  such  poems  as  Epodes  4,  7,  9,  and  16. 
But  these  strongly  emotional  verses  look  backward  to  the  tem- 
pestuous past ;  they  express  the  attitude  of  the  obscure  and 
defeated  republican,  struggling  with  circumstances  and  not  yet 
in  harmony  with  himself,  and  their  subjects  belong  rather  to 
the  period  of  strife  than  to  the  new  era  upon  which  Rome  was 
entering.  The  Augustan  Age,  precisely  because  it  checked  the 
vigorous  public  activities  of  the  preceding  period  and  turned 

10 


INTRODUCTION 

men  back  upon  science  and  philosophy  and  law  and  literature, 
was  of  all  periods  in  Roman  history  the  one  which  offered  the 
most  inviting  material  for  humorous  commentary.  As  on  the 
crowded  streets  of  the  city  men  of  every  country  and  of  all 
stations  met  and  passed  on,  —  a  peasant  from  the  mountains,  a 
deposed  Eastern  king,  a  Greek  philosopher,  a  Roman  noble,  — 
so  in  the  complex  social  structure  motives  of  every  possible 
form  and  color  were  at  work.  Though  public  activities  were 
checked,  the  office-holding  and  office-seeking  politician  flourished 
as  he  always  flourishes  under  a  one-man  power,  and  his  ambi- 
tions, selfish  enough,  yet  not  wholly  unworthy,  were  an  open 
invitation  to  discriminating  satire.  The  immense  business 
interests,  too,  which  centered  at  Rome,  presented  then,  as  now, 
their  puzzling  mixture  of  motives  and  of  influences,  and  it  was  to 
the  man  of  business  that  Horace  addressed  the  satire  which  was 
the  preface  to  his  first  collected  publication,  as  if  the  business 
man  was  to  him  the  most  marked  figure  of  the  age.  Inter- 
mingled with  these  ambitions  as  a  kind  of  common  reward  for 
every  form  of  success  was  the  prize  of  social  recognition  and 
prominence,  which  seems  to  have  had  for  a  Roman,  with  his 
outspoken  personal  conceits  and  vanities,  an  attractiveness  even 
greater  and  more  general  than  it  has  in  modern  societies  ;  and 
certainly  no  spectacle  offers  itself  more  invitingly  to  the  genial 
satirist  than  the  spectacle  of  the  social  struggle.  Horace  played 
his  part  in  society,  as  Thackeray  did,  and  gathered  material  for 
his  Book  of  Snobs.  Somewhat  apart  from  all  these  rivalries, 
but  with  rivalries  no  less  keen  in  their  own  spher.e,  were  the  two 
schools  of  philosophy,  the  Epicurean  and  the  Stoic.  Horace  is 
often,  in  a  vague  way,  regarded  as  an  Epicurean,  but  he  was,  in 
fact,  of  no  school  or  of  a  school  of  his  own,  and  it  is  not  as  an 
Epicurean  that  he  occasionally  strikes  a  sudden  blow  at  a  Stoic, 
or,  more  often,  burlesques  the  paradoxes  of  the  school  with 
ironical  solemnity.  He  recognized  the  underlying  truth  of  the 
Stoics ;  he  was  by  no  means  unconscious  of  the  seriousness  of 

II 


INTRODUCTION 

life ;  he  was,  indeed,  himself  a  preacher ;  but  he  was  also  a 
discriminating  humorist,  and  the  formal  Stoic,  apparently  more 
concerned  about  the  growth  of  his  beard  than  about  his  growth 
in  grace,  and  more  insistent  upon  the  phraseology  of  his  doctrines 
than  upon  their  intelligibility,  appealed  to  both  sides  of  his 
mind.  In  the  long  picture  gallery  of  the  Satires  no  figure  is 
more  frequently  recurrent.  Nor  did  Horace  neglect  the  men  of 
his  own  craft.  The  Augustan  Age,  which  is  often  called  the 
golden  age  of  Latin  literature,  was,  at  any  rate,  a  period  most 
prolific  in  skillful  writers.  Through  chance  allusions,  serious  or 
satirical,  we  are  able  to  see,  behind  the  figures  of  the  greater 
poets  whose  writings  have  survived  to  our  times,  a  long  array  of 
men  of  lesser  rank,  not  undistinguished  among  their  contempo- 
raries, and  undoubtedly  writers  of  merit.  And  below  them  was 
the  crowd  of  poets  and  historians  and  critics  and  essayists  whose 
names  even  have  been  lost.  Here  was  rich  material  for  the  satirist, 
and  material  especially  for  such  a  satirist  as  Horace,  who  was 
always  as  much  critic  as  poet  and  interested  alike  in  the  practice 
and  in  the  theory  of  his  art.  Somewhat  less  prominent  in  the 
life  of  the  city,  yet  marked  enough  to  give  occasional  color  to 
the  scene,  were  various  minor  caprices  or  eccentricities,  each 
with  its  little  circle  of  devotees.  There  were  the  collectors  of 
old  bronzes  and  tableware,  indifferent  to  the  artistic  imperfec- 
tions of  their  rare  pieces,  but  credulous  of  their  antiquity.  The 
professional  musicians  formed,  then  as  now,  a  class  by  them- 
selves, with  their  own  standards  and  judgments.  Petty  officials 
rejoiced  in  opportunities  to  display  themselves  in  elaborate 
costume.  It  is  in  part  the  notice  which  Horace  has  bestowed 
upon  them  that  makes  the  so-called  legacy  hunters  seem  to  have 
been  so  numerous  in  Rome,  but  the  brilliant  satire  in  which 
their  arts  are  burlesqued  was  the  product  of  observation,  not  of 
invention.  The  proper  arrangement  of  a  menu  and  the  doctrines 
of  gastronomy  were  quite  certainly  matters  of  serious  concern  to 
many  persons  in  Roman  society,  though  it  is  possible  that  the 

12 


INTRODUCTION 

humorously  detailed  descriptions  and  travesties  in  the  Second 
Book  make  the  followers  of  this  particular  mania  more  promi- 
nent than  they  actually  were  in  Roman  life.  But  certainly  the 
society  to  which  Horace's  friendship  with  Maecenas  gave  him 
access  was  a  highly  complex  society,  one  which  brought  before 
his  observant  eye  a  most  interesting  variety  of  types  and  of  in- 
dividuals, and  invited  good-humored  comment  and  even  caustic 
remark.  The  Satires  are  not  the  result  of  so  mechanical  a 
choice  as  Horace  jokingly  implies,  but  the  inevitable  expression 
of  the  reflections  of  such  a  man  as  Horace  was  upon  such  a 
society  as  that  of  the  Augustan  Age. 

The  form  which  Horace's  commentary  on  life  was  to  take 
was  already  determined  for  him.  In  this  respect  ancient 
literature  was  to  a  high  degree  conventional  and  traditional ; 
when  once  the  type  was  fixed  by  the  influence  of  some  great 
originator,  the  range  of  subsequent  deviation  from  the  type  was 
small.  Didactic  poetry  was  written  in  hexameters  from  Hesiod 
to  Ovid  ;  innovator  as  Euripides  was,  his  variations  from  the 
norm  of  tragedy  are  in  reality  slight.  Form  and  content  are 
identified  under  one  name  in  the  iambi  of  Archilochus.  The 
form  of  Roman  satire,  or  at  least  the  prevalent  form,  was  fixed 
by  C.  Lucilius.  He  was  an  eques  of  the  period  of  the  Gracchi 
and  the  younger  Scipio  Africanus,  a  man  of  education  and  rank, 
a  conservative  in  politics,  and  a  writer  of  force  and  courage. 
His  range  of  subjects  was  not  very  different  from  that  of  Horace, 
—  literary  criticism,  ethical  discussion,  social  comment, — but 
a  large  place  was  occupied  by  political  satire,  which  was  almost 
inevitable  in  that  stormy  period  and  in  the  writings  of  a  friend 
of  Scipio.  In  tone  he  was,  so  far  as  can  be  judged  from  the 
extant  fragments  and  from  the  statements  of  his  successors, 
extremely  personal  and  harsh.  The  fact  that  the  fragments  of 
his  writings  have  come  down  largely  in  quotations  by  the  gram- 
marians, who  were  interested  chiefly  in  unusual  words  or 
phrases,  makes  it  difficult  to  form  an  independent  judgment 

13 


INTRODUCTION 

of  his  style.  The  longest  quotation,  a  definition  of  -virtus  in 
thirteen  verses,  is  not  without  dignity  of  thought  and  expres- 
sion, but  in  general  the  criticism  of  Horace,  that  Lucilius 
wrote  too  freely  and  with  too  little  attention  to  finish  of  style, 
seems  to  be  justified.  The  loss  of  his  writings  is  a  loss  to  lin- 
guistic and  literary  history,  rather  than  to  literature  itself.  But 
he  performed  the  great  service  of  determining  both  the  tone  and 
the  form  of  satire.  He  gave  to  it  for  all  time  that  critical  and 
censorious  tone  which  is  still  associated  'with  the  name  and, 
after  considerable  experiment  with  other  verse  forms  which  had 
been  used  by  Ennius,  he  settled  upon  the  hexameter  as  the 
most  suitable  meter.  In  selecting  satire  as  his  field,  Horace 
therefore  felt  himself  bound  by  all  the  force  of  strong  tradition 
to  a  certain  tone  and  a  certain  verse. 

But  the  force  of  tradition  and  convention  in  ancient  literature, 
strong  as  it  was,  did  not  preclude  originality  ;  it  merely  set  the 
bounds  within  which  originality  might  work.  Of  imitation,  in 
any  proper  sense  of  the  word,  that  is,  of  attempt  to  copy  as 
closely  as  possible  the  work  of  an  older  writer,  there  is  very 
little  evidence  in  Greek  or  Latin  literature,  and  Horace,  setting 
himself  to  write  Lucili  ritu,  as  he  says,  accepting  as  his  starting 
point  the  definition  which  Lucilius  had  given  to  satire,  was 
also  acutely  conscious  of  the  imperfections  of  his  predecessor, 
and  fully  determined  to  avoid  them  in  his  own  work.  The 
most  evident  of  these  imperfections  was  in  the  matter  of  style. 
The  fragments  of  the  satires  of  Lucilius  are  bold  and  crude  in 
expression  ;  they  say  what  was  to  be  said,  but  they  say  it  with- 
out charm.  There  is  no  evidence  of  care  for  workmanship, 
of  pleasure  in  attractive  expression.  But  between  Lucilius 
and  Horace  was  the  great  Ciceronian  period,  in  which  the  whole 
subject  of  Latin  style  in  prose  and  in  verse  was  most  warmly 
debated  by  men  who  were  daily  practicing  the  art  of  writing. 
Two  generations  had  contributed  to  raise  the  standard  of  good 
style,  and  Horace 'and  the  friends  with  whom  he  lived  were 

14 


INTRODUCTION 

desirous  of  raising  it  still  further.  Horace  was,  besides,  by 
nature  a  literary  artist,  to  whom  the  shaping  of  phrases  into 
effective  and  pleasing  form  was  an  end  in  itself.  It  is,  indeed, 
surprising  to  a  modern  reader  that  the  justice  of  his  guarded 
and  moderate  criticisms  of  the  style  of  Lucilius  should  have 
been  questioned  by  any  intelligent  student  of  Latin  literature 
in  the  Augustan  Age.  That  he  was  entirely  successful  in  his 
attempt  to  improve  in  respect  to  style  upon  the  work  of  his 
predecessor  has  never  been  doubted. 

The  other  direction  in  which  Horace  endeavored  to  sur- 
pass Lucilius,  without  deviating  too  widely  from  the  type,  led 
him  into  greater  difficulties.  The  satire  of  Lucilius  was  un- 
doubtedly pungent  and  bitter  in  its  attacks  upon  persons  and 
upon  parties,  and  this  savageness  of  tone,  which  in  various 
forms  was  familiar  and  agreeable  to  the  Romans,  was,  in  fact, 
an  essential  element  in  satire  of  the  Lucilian  type.  But  it 
was  in  every  way  impossible  in  the  Augustan  Age  ;  the  polit- 
ical situation  between  42  and  31  B.C.  would  not  have  borne 
rough  handling,  and  the  softening  of  manners  had  put  a  check 
upon  personalities.  The  problem,  therefore,  which  presented 
itself  to  Horace  was  to  retain  the  pungency  of  individual 
criticism  without  violation  of  the  canons  of  good  taste  and  with- 
out offense  to  public  men.  A  part  of  the  problem  he  made  no 
attempt  to  solve  ;  he  left  politics  out  of  his-  satire  entirejy. 
even  at  the  time  when  his  patriotic  feeling  was  fxpressinp- 
|tsejf  in  the  Egode  quo,  quo  sceksti^uitis?  and  in  Epode  16. 
But  to  the  problem  of  giving  to  his  satire  the  appeaTance 
without  the  reality  of  personal  attack,  he  addressed  himself 
with  much  ingenuity.  The  Satires  seem  to  bristle  with  proper 
names,  but  examination  shows  that  only  a  very  few  of  the 
allusions  are  in  fact  personal  attacks.  Many  of  the. names 
are  taken  from  Lucilius  and  had  long  since  ceased  to  be 
anything  but  types  in  literature.  Others  are  from  the  Cice- 
ronian period,  the  names  of  men  who  were  then  notorious. 

15 


INTRODUCTION 

Still  others,  men  of  Horace's  day,  were  in  their  lifetime  al 
ready  so  much  the  subject  of  open  gossip  and  comment  that 
an  allusion  to  them  was  no  more  properly  offensive  or,  indeed, 
personal,  than  an  allusion  in  a  modern  newspaper  to  the  men 
whose  names  are  upon  everybody's  lips.  Many  names  are 
fictitious,  some  pure  inventions  like  the  names  in  a  novel, 
others  disguising  an  allusion  to  a  real  person.  The  residuum 
of  actual  personality,  such  as  would  be  offensive  to  modern 
feeling,  is  extremely  small.  Direct  attack  upon  an  individual 
was,  in  fact,  as  little  to  Horace's  taste  as  to  our  own,  and 
was  incompatible  with  the  lightness  of  touch  which  he  was 
endeavoring  to  attain.  Even  the  semblance  of  severity,  which 
the  Lucilian  tradition  obliged  him  to  maintain  in  his  earlier 
work,  grows  less  distinct  as  he  becomes  conscious  of  his  pe- 
culiar powers.  The  Second  Book  has  less  of  it  than  the  First  ;t 
indeed,  the  first  satire  of  that  book  is  a  kind  of  travesty  of- 
the  severely  personal  satire  and,  by  implication,  a  renuncia 
tion  of  it.  The  place  of  Horace  in  the  history  of  Roman 
satire  is,  it  is  true,  in  the  line  of  succession  from  Lucilius, 
but  his  own  contribution  to  that  history  amounts  almost  to 
the  creation  of  a  new  literary  genre,  9.  new  variety  of  satire. 

The  events  in  the  life  of  Horace  after  the  publication  of  the 
Epodes  and  the  Second  Book  in  30  B.C.  are  of  interest  to  the 
reader  of  the  Satires  only  in  so  far  as  they  interpret  his  earlier 
period.  He  turned  at  once  from  satire  to  lyric  poetry,  following 
still  further  the  path  upon  which  he  had  entered  in  the  Epodes, 
and  published  in  23  B.C.  the  first  three  books  of  the  Odes,  to 
which  he  gave  the  best  of  his  powers  and  the  best  years  of  his 
life.  Aside  from  other  and  more  determining  motives,  —  the 
inner  impulse  and  the  fact  that  the  lyric  is  a  higher  form  of  art 
than  satire,  —  the  choice  doubtless  indicates  also  a  feeling  that 
he  had  for  the  time  exhausted  the  field  of  satire,  that  he  had 
carried  his  modifications  of  the  Lucilian  type  as  far  as  it  was 
possible  for  him  to  carry  them.  But  the  habit  of  observation 

16 


INTRODUCTION 

was  still  strong  in  him,  and  after  the  publication  of  the  Odes 
he  resumed  his  commentary  on  life  and  society  in  the  form 
of  epistles  in  hexameter.  By  the  choice  of  a  new  and  different 
form  he  freed  himself  from  the  limitations  of  satire ;  at  the 
same  time,  as  the  tradition  of  the  epistle  in  verse  was  less 
definitely  fixed,  the  new  form  did  not  hamper  him.  The  in- 
terval that  separates  such  a  satire  as  2,  6  from  such  an  epistle 
as  i,  7  is  very  slight ;  by  addressing  the  satire  co  Maecenas,  he 
could  easily  have  made  it  an  epistle  in  form,  and  with  a  few 
modifications  the  epistle  might  have  been  published  with  the 
Satires.  It  might  be  said  that  the  three  collections  of  hexame- 
ter poetry  represent  three  steps  in  a  continuous  process  ;  the 
First  Book  of  the  Satires  is,  in  the  main,  satire  after  the  man- 
ner of  Lucilius,  the  Second  Book  is  an  experiment  with  the 
dialogue  form,  and  the  First  Book  of  the  Epistles  marks  the 
complete  breaking  away  from  the  Lucilian  tradition.  They  are 
three  stages  in  the  working  out  of  a  literary  form  within  which 
the  temperament  of  Horace  could  express  itself  with  the  least 
possible  sense  of  restriction. 

Before  his  death,  which  occurred  on  the  27th  of  November, 
8  B.C.,  Horace  was  already  recognized  as  the  greatest  of  Ro- 
man lyric  poets  and  as  the  most  conspicuous  figure,  next  to 
Vergil,  in  the  literature  of  his  time.  This  position  his  poems 
retained  after  his  death  ;  they  were  universally  read  and  were 
used  as  text-books  in  schools.  Critical  and  learned  commen- 
tary began  to  gather  about  them  in  the  first  century  of  the  Em- 
pire, and,  before  the  fall  of  Roman  power  in  the  West,  copies 
of  his  works  were  in  wide  circulation,  often  prefaced  by  the 
account  of  his  life  from  Suetonius  and  annotated  with  scholia. 
During  the  Middle  Ages,  when  knowledge  of  the  ancient  world 
was  at  its  lowest,  his  poems  were  still  read  in  schools  and  fre- 
quently copied  in  the  monastery  libraries,  and  with  the  Revival 
of  Learning  many  editions  were  issued  from  the  early  printing 
presses.  In  modern  times  they  have  formed  a  part  of  the 

HOK.  SAT.  —  2  17 


INTRODUCTION 

school  or  university  curriculum  in  all  countries ;  they  have  been 
translated  more  often  than  the  works  of  any  other  ancient 
writer,  and  have  deeply  influenced  modern  literature.  All  this 
is  evidence  of  the  high  esteem  in  which  his  poetry  has  been 
held  by  scholars  and  men  of  letters ;  the  estimate  of  men  of 
affairs,  of  men  outside  of  academic  life,  is  somewhat  similar. 
For  it  is  probably  true  that  of  all  the  writers  of  Greek  and  Latin 
poetry  —  many  of  them  greater  than  Horace  —  no  one  has  so 
frequently  been  carried  away  from  the  university  life  and  be- 
come a  part  of  the  familiar  intellectual  furniture  of  educated 
men  in  active  life.  The  explanation  of  an  interest  so  wide- 
spread and  so  long-continued  is  not,  of  course,  to  be  sought  in 
those  qualities  or  characteristics  which  Horace  shares  with 
other  writers.  He  reflects,  it  is  true,  a  highly  interesting  period 
in  history,  but  the  letters  of  Cicero  are  an  even  more  vivid  re- 
flection of  a  more  critical  period.  His  poetic  form,  as  it  is 
worked  out  in  the  lyrics,  is  most  admirable,  and  poetic  form  is 
one  of  the  main  reasons  for  our  continued  study  of  the  two 
classic  literatures,  but  the  range  of  its  attractive  power  is 
limited.  That  which  has  differentiated  Horace  from  other 
writers  and  made  him  permanently  attractive  to  men  of  widely 
varied  taste  is  independent  of  his  circumstances  and,  to  a  con- 
siderable degree,  of  his  artistic  form ;  it  lies  partly  in  the 
personal  character  which  his  writings  disclose  and  partly  in  the. 
permanent  worth  of  his  comments  upon  life. 

The  character  of  a  writer  or  an  artist  as  it  shows  itself  in  his 
work  must  be  learned  by  indirection,  by  impressions  repeated 
and  deepened  into  familiarity.  For  this  kind  of  personal  ac- 
quaintance Horace  gives  abundant  material.  Enough  has  been 
said  above  to  correct  the  notion  that  he  was  a  dilettante,  playing 
with  life.  He  was,  it  is  true,  fundamentally  an  observer  rather 
than  an  actor,  and  he  was  by  temperament  genial  and  tolerant ; 
these  are  the  qualities  upon  which  the  charm  of  his  personality 
rests ;  but  a  merely  temperamental  tolerance  is,  like  tempera- 


INTRODUCTION 

mental  optimism,  a  very  superficial  and  uninteresting  quality. 
Horace  was  a  man  of  warm  feeling  and  of  strong  convictions, 
though  his  convictions  are  in  part  alien  to  our  thought,  and  the 
lightness  with  which  he  sometimes  touches  serious  things  is  not 
the  lightness  of  carelessness.  He  had  learned  early,  not  with- 
out struggle  and  pain,  the  lesson  of  adjustment  to  the  limita- 
tions of  life,  had  learned  that  the  secret  of  a  composed  and 
dignified  life  lies  in  the  acceptance  of  the  inevitable.  Even  in 
his  less  cheerful  moods  he  faced  his  heaviest  losses  with  steadi- 
ness :  — 

durum  :  sed  levius  fit  patientia, 

quidquid  corrigere  est  nefas. 

But  his  ordinary  mood  was  not  tragic ;  he  preferred  to  meet 
life  with  a  smile,  not  underestimating  the  possibilities  of  loss 
and  trouble,  but  also  not  overestimating  them.  And  it  is  the 
fact  that  his  genial  acceptance  of  life  rests  upon  a  foundation  of 
cool  judgment  and  shrewd  comprehension  that  gives  it  mean- 
ing. It  is  this  combination  that  makes  him  the  philosopher  for 
men  of  the  world.  For  the  man  of  affairs,  if  he  is  conscious  of 
life  at  all,  is  seeking  for  a  formula  which  will  include  all  the 
follies  and  weaknesses  of  men  and  will  teach  him  how  to  accept 
them  with  a  smile.  The  real  meaning  of  Horace's  philosophy 
is  poorly  expressed  by  nil  admirari,  as  the  words  are  commonly 
understood,  and  not  very  well  by  aurea  mediocritas ;  it  is  a  phi- 
losophy of  comprehension  and  tolerance,  and  the  charm  of  his 
personality  is  that  he  so  perfectly  embodies  his  own  doctrine. 

The  value  of  his  comments  upon  men  and  society  lies  partly 
in  the  application  of  his  philosophy  to  life,  partly  in  the  peculiar 
forms  in  which  he  expresses  it.  His  satires,  and,  to  a  less 
degree,  his  epistles,  are  a  picture  gallery.  He  does  not  describe 
individuals  or,  if  he  does,  it  is  in  terms  so  general  as  to  make 
them  types  ;  his  little  pictures  are  done  in  few  lines,  but  in  lines 
so  expressive  that  they  tell  the  essential  truth  about  a  man. 
Such  a  characterization  as  that  of  Tigellius  in  Sat.  i ,  3  or  that 


INTRODUCTION 

of  Damasippus  in  Sat.  2,  3,  or  the  longer  description  by  sugges- 
tion in  Sat.  i,  9,  is  as  true  and  as  recognizable  now  as  it  was 
when  it  was  written,  because  it  presents  the  essential  qualities 
which  are  of  no  single  period  or  race.  The  power  to  draw 
such  pictures  is  not,  it  is  true,  the  highest  kind  of  artistic  power, 
and  it  does  not  necessarily  carry  with  it  either  a  profound  phi- 
losophy or  great  breadth  of  view.  Great  artists  have  lacked  it, 
and  some  caricaturists  have  had  it.  The  most  obvious  modern 
illustrations  are  in  fiction ;  George  Eliot  had  not  a  trace  of  it ; 
Anthony  Trollope  had  it  in  a  high  degree.  Such  little  pictures 
do  not  teach  us  the  meaning  of  life,  in  its  larger  aspects  and 
relations.  They  teach  us  in  a  nearer  way  about  people  ;  they 
show  us  how  to  analyze  and  classify  ;  they  stimulate  our  in- 
telligent comprehension  of  the  men  we  meet.  The  reader  of 
Horace,  if  he  gets  his  lesson  truly,  understands  better  the  man 
who  sits  in  the  seat  next  to  him,  and,  if  he  becomes  a  true 
disciple,  he  understands  himself  better,  too. 


INTRODUCTION 

VITA  HORATII 

FROM  SUETONIUS,  De  Viris  Illustribits 

Q.  Horatius  Flaccus  Venusinus,  patre,  ut  ipse  tradit,  libertino 
et  exactionum  coactore,  ut  vero  creditum  est,  salsamentario,  cum 
illi  quidam  in  altercatione  exprobrasset :  '  quotiens  ego  vidi  pa- 
trem  tuum  brachio  se  emungentem  ! '  Bello  Philippensi  excitus 
a  M.  Bruto  imperatore  tribunus  militum  meruit,  victisque  parti- 
bus  venia  impetrata  scriptum  quaestorium  comparavit.  Ac  primo 
Maecenati,  mox  Augusto  insinuatus  non  mediocrem  in  amborum 
amicitia  locum  tenuit.  Maecenas  quantopere  eum  dilexerit  satis 
testatur  illo  epigrammate  :  — 

ni  te  visceribus  meis,  Horati, 
plus  iam  diligo,  tu  tuum  sodalem 
Ninnio  videas  strigosiorem; 

sed  multo  magis  extremis  iudiciis  tali  ad  Augustum  elogio: 
'  Horati  Flacci  ut  mei  esto  memor.'  Augustus  epistularum 
quoque  ei  officium  obtulit,  ut  hoc  ad  Maecenatem  scripto  sig- 
nificat :  '  ante  ipse  sufficiebam  scribendis  epistulis  amicorum, 
nunc  occupatissimus  et  infirmus  Horatium  nostrum  a  te  cupio 
abducere.  Veniet  ergo  ab  ista  parasitica  mensa  ad  hanc  regiam 
et  nos  in  epistulis  scribendis  adiuvabit.'  Ac  ne  recusanti  qui- 
dem  aut  succensuit  quicquam  aut  amicitiam  suam  ingerere  desiit. 
Extant  epistulae,  e  quibus  argument!  gratia  pauca  subieci :  '  sume 
tibi  aliquid  iuris  apud  me,  tamquam  si  convictor  mihi  fueris  ; 
recte  enim  et  non  temere  feceris,  quoniam  id  usus  mihi  tecum 
esse  volui,  si  per  valitudinem  tuam  fieri  possit.'  Et  rursus  :  '  tui 
qualem  habeam  memoriam  poteris  ex  Septimio  quoque  nostro 
audire  ;  nam  incidit  ut  illo  coram  fieret  a  me  tui  mentio.  Neque 
enim  si  tu  superbus  amicitiam  nostram  sprevisti,  ideo  nos  quoque 
avOvirtpr)<f>a.vov(jLtv. '  Praeterea  saepe  eum  inter  alios  iocos  puris- 
simum  penem  et  homuncionem  lepidissimum  appellat  unaque  et 
altera  liberalitate  locupletavit.  Scripta  quidem  eius  usque  adeo 

21 


INTRODUCTION 

probavit  mansuraque  perpetuo  opinatus  est,  ut  non  modo  Saecu- 
lare  carmen  componendum  iniunxerit,  sed  et  Vindelicam  victo- 
riam  Tiberii  Drusique  privignorum  suorum,  eumque  coegerit 
propter  hoc  tribus  carminum  libris  ex  longo  intervallo  quartum 
addere ;  post  sermones  vero  quosdam  lectos  nullam  sui  mentio- 
nem  habitam  ita  sit  questus :  '  irasci  me  tibi  scito,  quod  non  in 
plerisque  eius  modi  scriptis  mecum  potissimum  loquaris.  An 
vereris  ne  apud  posteros  infame  tibi  sit,  quod  videaris  familiaris 
nobis  esse  ? '  expresseritque  eclogam  ad  se  cuius  initium  est :  — 

cum  tot  sustineas  et  tanta  negotia  solus, 
res  Italas  armis  tuteris,  moribus  ornes, 
legibus  emendes,  in  publica  commoda  peccem, 
si  longo  sermone  morer  tua  tempera,  Caesar. 

Habitu  corporis  fuit  brevis  atque  obesus,  qualis  et  a  semet  ipso 
in  satiris  describitur  et  ab  Augusto  hac  epistula :  '  pertulit  ad 
me  Oniscus  libellum  tuum,  quern  ego,  ut  excusantem,  quantulus- 
cumque  est,  boni  consulo.  Vereri  autem  mihi  videris  ne  maiores 
libelli  tui  sint  quam  ipse  es,  sed  tibi  statura  deest,  corpusculum 
non  deest.  Itaque  licebit  in  sextariolo  scribas,  quo  circuitus 
voluminis  tui  sit  oy/cwSeora-ros,  sicut  est  ventriculi  tui.'  Vixit 
plurimum  in  secessu  ruris  sui  Sabini  aut  Tiburtini  domusque 
eius  ostenditur  circa  Tiburni  luculum.  Venerunt  in  manus  meas 
et  elegi  sub  titulo  eius  et  epistula  prosa  oratione  quasi  commen- 
dantis  se  Maecenati,  sed  utraque  falsa  puto ;  nam  elegi  vulgares, 
epistula  etiam  obscura,  quo  vitio  minime  tenebatur.  Natus  est 
vi.  Idus  Decembris  L.  Cotta  et  L.  Torquato  consulibus,  deces- 
sit  v.  kal.  Decembris  C.  Marcio  Censorino  et  C.  Asinio  Gallo 
consulibus  septimo  et  quinquagesimo  anno,  herede  Augusto 
palam  nuncupate,  cum  urgente  vi  valetudinis  non  sufficeret  ad 
obsignandas  testamenti  tabulas.  Humatus  et  conditus  est  extre- 
mis Esquiliis  iuxta  Maecenatis  tumulum. 


22 


Q.    HORATI    FLACCI 

SERMONES 

LIBER    PRIMVS 


There  is  no  reference  to  current  events  sufficiently  definite  to  fix  the 
date  of  this  Satire  by  internal  evidence.  It  was  written  after  Horace's 
introduction  to  Maecenas  in  38,  and  the  maturity  of  style  and  treatment 
show  a  great  advance  upon  the  early  Satires  of  this  book,  2,  7,  and  8. 
Obviously,  it  is  introductory  to  the  whole  book,  published  in  35,  and  it 
was  probably  written  shortly  before  that  date. 

'What  is  the  source  of  the  social  discontent  of  our  times?  Not,  cer- 
tainly, as  is  sometimes  said,  in  the  peculiar  hardships  of  this  or  that 
occupation.  The  very  men  who  offer  this  explanation  disprove  it  by 
their  conduct.  Nor  can  the  persistent  devotion  of  men  to  business  be 
justified,  as  some  of  them  appear  to  think,  by  the  praiseworthy  desire 
to  provide  against  future  needs.  It  is  something  deeper  than  this  and 
less  worthy  —  the  mere  desire  to  get  rich,  to  be  richer  than  others. 

'  A  life  given  up  to  this  pursuit  is  no  better  than  the  life  of  the  miser 
of  fiction.  Such  a  man  dares  not  spend  anything,  lest  he  spend  all, 
and  does  not  see  that,  to  one  who  lives  a  natural  life,  the  possession 
of  what  is  never  to  be  used  is  not  a  gain,  but  a  burden. 

'  To  say  that  social  standing  depends  upon  money  is  to  say  what  is 
perhaps  true,  but  is  not  to  the  point.  For  the  result  is  the  same ; 
the  man  with  such  an  ambition  merely  gathers  wealth  to  tantalize  him- 
self, purchasing  only  terrors  and  unhappiness  with  it.  He  kills  the 
natural  affections,  and  spends  his  life  in  providing  against  contingen- 
cies that  will,  in  all  probability,  never  arise.  I  am  not  arguing  that  one 
should  waste  his  money  ;  that  is  only  another  extreme  of  folly ;  between 
the  two  lies  the  safe  middle  course. 

'  The  source  of  our  unhappiness,  to  answer  the  question  with  which 
I  began,  is  the  desire  to  be  rich,  to  be  a  little  richer.  We  forget  the 
many  who  are  poorer  than  we,  and  see  only  the  few  who  are  ahead  of 

23 


I,  I,  I]  HORATI 

us.  We  spend  our  lives  in  an  ignoble  struggle,  and  we  come  still 
unsatisfied  to  the  end. 

'Enough  of  sermonizing.     I'm  no  Crispinus.1 

The  subject  of  this  introductory  satire  is  the  race  for  wealth.  In  the 
universal  peace  which  followed  the  civil  wars,  the  financial  affairs  of  the 
world  centered  at  Rome  as  an  imperial  clearing  house,  and  great  for- 
tunes were  rapidly  made  by  men  of  the  capitalist  class.  In  general,  the 
old  nobility  and  the  philosophers  and  writers  kept  aloof  from  business, 
which  consequently  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  equites,  who  had  had  only 
a  slight  part  in  public  affairs,  or  of  the  freedmen,  who  were  ill-fitted  by 
character  and  experience  to  make  a  large-minded  or  even  a  rational  use 
of  their  money.  Some  of  them  burst  out  into  ridiculous  display,  and 
furnished  easy  material  for  the  satirist ;  others,  with  less  obvious  folly, 
knew  no  better  use  of  their  acquired  wealth  than  to  make  it  the  means 
of  acquiring  still  more.  It  is  to  men  of  the  latter  class  that  this  dis- 
course is  addressed.  For  this  is  not  pure  satire,  holding  up  the  pecul- 
iarities of  certain  men  to  the  scorn  of  others ;  it  is,  in  part,  a  discourse, 
a  sermon,  addressed  directly  to  the  over-eager  man  of  business,  and 
intended  to  show  to  him,  for  his  possible  betterment,  the  intrinsic  little- 
ness of  the  occupation  to  which  he  was  so  ardently  devoting  himself. 

Horace  frequently  employs  in  other  places  the  thoughts  and  some- 
times the  figures  and  expressions  of  this  satire.  Compare  especially 
the  end  of  Epode  I,  the  main  thought  of  Epode  2,  and  the  whole  of 
Epode  4.  The  similarity  between  the  social  structure  of  the  Augustan 
Age  and  our  own  times  could  scarcely  be  made  more  vivid  than  it  is  by 
the  fact  that  the  satirist  of  that  society  chose  for  the  theme  of  his  open- 
ing satire  the  race  for  wealth. 

Qui  fit,  Maecenas,  ut  nemo,  quam  sibi  sortem 
seu  ratio  dederit  seu  fors  obiecerit,  ilia 

i.  Qui  fit:   how  does  it  hap-  with   the    subject    of   the    poem. 

Pen?     But  the  interrogative  form  The  address  to  Maecenas  in  the 

is  merely  a  rhetorical  way  of  in-  first  Epode  is   more   natural  and 

troducing  the  general   subject  —  graceful.  —  quam  sortem  .  .  .  ilia  : 

the  discontent  of  men  —  by  begin-  =  ilia  sorte  .  .  .  quam.     The  word 

ning  with  its  source.  —  Maecenas :  sors  is  used  without  thought  of  its 

the  direct  address  serves  to  dedi-  original  sense,  as  'lot  Ms  in  English, 

cate  the  first  book  of  Satires  to  2.   ratio  and  fors  are  often  used 

Horace's  patron  and  friend.     The  together  to  cover  the  whole  field 

dedication  of  the  Odes  is  like  this,  of  human  life ;   everything  is  due 

a  little  formal   and  unconnected  either  to  deliberate  choice  or  to 

24 


SERMONES 


[»»  »•  7 


contentus  vivat,  laudet  diversa  sequentis? 

'  O  fortunati  mercatores  ! '  gravis  annis 

miles  ait,  multo  iam  fractus  membra  labore. 

Contra  mercator,  navem  iactantibus  Austris, 

'  Militia  est  potior.     Quid  enim  ?     Concurritur;  horae 


mere  chance.  The  same  contrast 
is  implied  in  Sat.  i,  6,  54,  though 
ratio  is  not  actually  used.  The 
two  verbs,  dederit,  obiecerit,  carry 
on  the  contrast  between  the  de- 
liberate and  the  accidental. 

3.  laudet:  the  full  expression 
of  the  thought  would  seem  to  re- 
quire sed  unus  quisque  laudet,  but 
the  negative  of  nemo  goes  only 
with  contentus,  not  with  vivat,  so 
that  the  thought  is  '  every  one  is 
discontented  with  his  own  life  and 
envious  of  the  lives  of  others.' 
Cf.  vs.  109,  where  the  phrases 
nemo  se  probet  (~  contentus  vivat) 
and  laudet  are  connected  by  ac 
potius.  The  meaning  of  laudare 
is  not  precisely  to  praise,  but  '  to 
speak  of  with  admiration,'  as  in 
Plaut.  Rud.  523,  laudo  fortunas 
tuas,  and  in  combination  with 
diversa  sequentis  it  suggests  the 
idea  of  envy. 

4-12.  The  two  pairs  of  con- 
trasted examples  —  soldier  and 
sailor,  lawyer  and  farmer  —  and 
indeed  the  whole  scene  which  is 
half  described,  half  suggested  in 
vss.  15-22,  come  from  the  con- 
ventional popular  philosophy,  per- 
haps from  some  Greek  burlesque 
drama.  Horace  uses  them  fre- 
quently with  slight  variations. 


4-5.  The  first  illustration  is 
barely  suggested,  without  specific 
details,  gravis  annis  means,  in 
ordinary  usage,  weighed  down  with 
years,  not  distinguishing  between 
years  of  life  and  years  of  service, 
and  the  thought  is  repeated  and 
amplified  in  the  next  phrase.  — 
fractus  membra  :  broken  in  health. 
The  soldier,  feeling  old  and  worn, 
says,  'I  wish  I  had  gone  into 
business.' 

6-8.  mercator :  a  merchant  who 
sails  his  own  vessel  on  a  business 
venture,  as  the  merchants  in  the 
China  trade  did  a  hundred  years 
ago.  He  is  therefore  called,  in- 
differently, either  mercator  or 
nauta  (vs.  29),  and  the  following 
lines  deal  only  with  the  hardships 
of  the  sailor's  life. — iactantibus: 
the  tense  is  important ;  he  is 
in  the  midst  of  a  gale.  —  Austris  : 
the  southerly  winds  are  heavy  and 
squally  in  the  Mediterranean,  and 
Horace  generally  uses  Auster\vith 
an  implication  of  storm,  as  '  north- 
easter' is  used  in  English.  —  Quid 
enim?  simply  why  ?  or  why  then  ? 
enim  was  originally  a  strengthen- 
ing particle,  and  before  it  had 
acquired  the  meaning/br,  it  formed 
compound  phrases  with  conjunc- 
tions and  particles  (at  enim,  non 


I,  I,  8J 


HORATI 


momenta  cita  mors  venit  aut  victoria  laeta.' 
Agricolam  laudat  iuris  legumque  peritus, 
10     sub  galli  cantum  consultor  ubi  ostia  pulsat. 

Ille,  datis  vadibus  qui  rure  extractus  in  urbem  est, 
solos  felices  viventis  clamat  in  urbe. 


enitn,  quta  enim)  in  which  the 
earlier  meaning  is  preserved. 
There  is  no  ellipsis  here.  —  Con- 
curritur :  impersonal,  expressing 
the  brevity  of  the  crisis  in  a 
soldier's  life.  —  horae  momento : 
the  Romans  did  not  measure 
short  spaces  of  time  with  pre- 
cision, and  there  is  no  Latin  word 
for  'minute'  or  'second.'  hora 
is  therefore  somewhat  vague,  like 
the  English  '  the  hour  of  victory ' ; 
cf.  puncto  mobilis  horae,  Epist. 
2,  2,  172.  —  The  second  illustra- 
tion is  more  detailed  than  the 
first,  and  the  folly  of  the  momen- 
tary desire  to  exchange  occupa- 
tions is  more  clearly  suggested. 
The  sailor's  endurance  is  broken 
down  by  the  long-continued  storm, 
and  he  wishes  for  the  short  crisis 
of  the  soldier's  life,  forgetting 
alike  the  greater  profits  of  a  busi- 
ness career  and  the  wearisome 
routine  of  garrison  life. 

9-10.  Agricolam  laudat :  scarcely 
more  than '  wishes  he  were  a  farm- 
er.'—  ius  and  leges  are  sometimes 
contrasted,  —  e-g-,  as  the  general 
body  of  law  and  the  special  legis- 
lative enactments,  —  but  here  the 
two  contrasting  terms  are  used 
together  to  express  one  general 
idea.  —  peritus :  the  patronus,  to 


whom  friends  and  clients  came  at 
the  early  morning  salutatio  to  ask 
advice  on  business  and  legal  mat- 
ters. There  is  a  personal  touch 
in  this  illustration,  for  Horace  did 
not  like  to  get  up  early  (ad  quar- 
tam  iaceo,  Sal.  I,  6,  122). 

ii-i2.  Ille  :  the  other,  the  farm- 
er, of  the  class  whose  unembar- 
rassed life  the  lawyer  has  just  been 
praising.  He  is  not  quite  identi- 
fied with  the  consultor.  —  datis 
vadibus :  not  necessarily  bail  in 
a  criminal  action,  but  surety  for 
his  appearance  as  defendant  in  any 
legal  case.  In  this  second  pair 
of  illustrations  Horace  allows  the 
absurdity  of  the  discontent  to  ap- 
pear plainly  and  comically.  The 
lawyer,  in  his  momentary  annoy- 
ance at  being  called  early  in  the 
morning,  wishes  he  were  a  farmer, 
forgetting  that  the  farmer  is  habit- 
ually an  early  riser.  The  lack  of 
serious  consideration  on  the  part 
of  the  countryman  is  shown  by 
the  suddenness  of  his  conversion  ; 
he  has  been  dragged  (extractus) 
against  his  will  into  the  city,  but 
once  there  he  loudly  proclaims 
(clamat)  not  only  that  the  city  is 
better  than  the  country,  but  even 
that  city  people  are  the  only  per- 
sons who  are  happy. 


26 


SERMONES 


[i,  i,  20 


Cetera  de  genere  hoc,  adeo  sunt  multa,  loquacem 
delassare  valent  Fabium.     Ne  te  morer,  audi 
quo  rem  deducam.     Si  quis  deus,  '  En  ego,'  dicat, 
'  iam  f aciam  quod  voltis  :  eris  tu,  qui  modo  miles, 
mercator ;  tu,  consultus  modo,  rusticus  :  hinc  vos, 
vos  hinc  mutatis  discedite  partibus.  —  Heia ! 
quid  statis  ? '  —  nolint.     Atqui  licet  esse  beatis. 
Quid  causae  est,  merito  quin  illis  luppiter  ambas 


13.  Cetera  de  genere  hoc :  Hor- 
ace was   familiar  with    Lucretius 
(see  notes   on  23,   117-119)   and 
uses  this  common  Lucretian  phrase 
to  give  to  the  passage  a  burlesque 
air  of  philosophizing. 

14.  Fabium :  the  scholiast  says 
that  he  was  a  man  in  public  life 
who  had  written  some  volumes  on 
Stoic  philosophy.     It  is  character- 
istic of  Horace  to  put  his  personal 
satire,  which  is  not  very  frequent 
or    very  severe,   into   such    light 
touches  as  this,  given  in  passing 
and  merely  by  way  of  illustration. 
Cf.  the  allusion  to  Crispinus  be- 
low, vs.  1 20.      And  these  humor- 
ous attentions  are  often  bestowed 
upon  the  Stoics,  whose  formalism 
and  austerity  were  repugnant  to  a 
man  of  Horace's  temperament,  and 
led   him   to   overlook   their  good 
qualities.     With   all  their  superfi- 
cial  defects,   they  were  the  most 
serious  religious  teachers   in  Ro- 
man  life.  —  Ne  te  morer :    not  to 
delay  you,   '  not   to   be   too    long 
about  it ' ;   a  parenthetic  clause  of 
purpose. 


15  f.  quo  rem  deducam:  '  what 
my  point  is  going  to  be,'  '  what 
conclusion  I  am  going  to  reach.' 
—  Si  quis  deus  .  .  .  dicat :  the 
apodosis  is  in  nolint,  19.  The  god 
is  at  this  point  indefinite,  but,  as 
the  scene  becomes  clearer,  he  is 
definitely  named,  vs.  20.  — En  ego : 
here  I  am ;  to  be  taken  closely 
with  faciam.  Both  ego  and  iam 
are  emphatic ;  '  here  I  am,  /  will 
do  your  business  foi  you  on  the 
spot.' 

1 8.  mutatis  .  .  .  partibus :    ex- 
actly like  the  English  parts  in  a 
drama;    cf.  paries  of  a  political 
party. — Heia:  a  colloquial  excla- 
mation of  surprise  and  dissatisfac- 
tion, as  if  the  god  was  annoyed 
that  his  friendly  offices  were  not 
acceptable. 

19.  beatis :    dat.  after  esse,  as 
if  eis  had    been  expressed   after 
licet. 

20.  causae  :       partitive      gen. 
with   a  neut.    pron. ;     very    com- 
mon in  colloquial   Latin,  Plautus, 
Terence,  Cicero's   Letters,  Catul- 
lus. 


27 


I,  1,  2l] 


11OKATI 


iratus  buccas  inflet,  neque  se  fore  posthac 
tarn  facilem  dicat,  votis  ut  praebeat  aurem  ? 
Praeterea,  ne  sic,  ut  qui  iocularia,  ridens 
percurram,  (quamquam  ridentem  dicere  verum 
25      quid  vetat  ?  ut  pueris  olim  dant  crustula  blandi 
doctores,  elementa  velint  ut  discere  prima ; 
sed  tamen  amoto  quaeramus  seria  ludo;) 
ille  gravem  duro  terram  qui  vertit  aratro, 
perfidus  hie  caupo,  miles,  nautaeque  per  omne 


21.  buccas  inflet:  cf.  Plaut. 
Stichus,  767,  age,  tarn  infla  buccas, 
addressed  to  a  flute  player,  bucca 
is  a  Low  Latin  word  (French 
bouche),  and  the  phrase  is  an  in- 
tentional vulgarism  to  depict  the 
burlesque  expression  of  anger. — 
illis  :  dat.  of  disadvantage.  The 
whole  passage,  15-22,  reads  like 
a  description  of  a  mimtts,  in  which 
a  god  suddenly  appears  upon  the 
stage  between  the  pairs  of  discon- 
tented men  and,  with  bustling 
good  nature,  grants  their  wishes ; 
then,  as  it  appears  at  once  from 
their  looks  that  they  do  not  really 
desire  the  change,  his  good  nature 
changes  to  comic  anger.  From 
vss.  4  f.,  which  are  serious  in  ex- 
pression and  thought,  to  the  final 
burlesque  there  is  a  gradual  and 
skillful  uncovering  of  the  under- 
lying absurdity  of  ascribing  the 
discontent  of  men  to  their  occu- 
pations or  their  lot  in  life. 

23.  Praeterea  :  a  Lucretianword 
for  passing  to  a  new  point.  —  ut 
qui  iocularia :  supply  percttrrit ; 
'  like  *  writer  for  the  comic  papers.1 


24.  quamquam:  and  yet ;  cor- 
rective, not  subordinating. 

25.  The  kindergarten  method 
of  teaching  children  their  letters 
by  turning  the  work  into  play  is 
alluded  to  by  Quintilian  (i,  i,  26), 
and  Jerome   advises  a  father  to 
reward   his   daughter's   efforts  to 
learn  to  read  by  giving  her  crus- 
tula,   cookies,    and    mulsa,    sweet 
drinks.  —  olim :  sometimes ;  a  not 
uncommon  meaning. 

27.  sed    tamen :     not    exactly 
correlative   to   quamquam.      The 
thought  is  twice  reversed :  "  I  will 
treat    this    matter   seriously,    not 
jokingly ;  and  yet  I  might  prop- 
erly treat  it  jokingly,  for  a  joke 
may  sugar-coat  a  serious  purpose, 
like    the    candies    that    teachers 
sometimes  give  to  children ;  but, 
all   the   same    (tamen),   I    prefer 
now  to  keep  to  my  original  plan 
and  treat  the  matter  seriously.'1 

28.  ille  ;  demonstrative,  to  pair 
with   hie   below.  —  gravem  duro  : 
by  way  of  emphasizing  the  severity 
of  the  labor. 

29.  perfidus  .  .  .  caupo :  from 


28 


SERMONES 


£«• «•  35 


30     audaces  mare  qui  currunt,  hac  mente  laborem 
sese  ferre,  senes  ut  in  otia  tuta  recedant, 
aiunt,  cum  sibi  sint  congesta  cibaria  :  sicut 
parvola  (nam  exemplo  est)  magni  formica  laboris 
ore  trahit  quodcumque  potest  atque  addit  acervo, 

35      quem  struit,  baud  ignara  ac  non  incauta  futuri. 


this  point  the  thought  turns  more 
directly  toward  the  main  subject 
of  the  satire  —  money-making  — 
and,  in  the  review  of  the  four  types 
of  discontented  men  from  this 
point  of  view,  the  inris  consultus, 
who  serves  for  honor  rather  than 
fees,  is  omitted,  and  the  caupo, 
huckster,  innkeeper,  is  substi- 
tuted ;  as  a  man  of  the  town,  he 
makes  a  good  contrast  to  the 
farmer.  For  variety,  the  order 
also  is  changed.  —  perfidus :  peo- 
ple of  the  better  classes  seldom 
used  inns  in  traveling  (compare 
Sat.  i,  5),  and  the  poor  taverns 
frequented  by  slaves  and  laborers 
had  a  bad  reputation  for  cheating 
and  robbery. 

30.  currunt :  this  verb  is  used 
of  sailing  also  in  Epist.  I,  i,  45  ; 
i,  it,  27  and  perhaps  in  Carm. 
i,  28,  36.  Cf.  'run  before  the 
wind.1  —  hac  mente-  this  is  their 
object,  emphatic  by  position  and 
explained  in  the  clause  ut  .  .  . 
recedant. 

31-35.  These  lines  contain  the 
explanation  which  men  give  of 
their  apparent  inconsistency  in 
continuing  in  occupations  which 
they  themselves  complain  of  as 


dangerous  or  wearisome,  and  the 
words  are  carefully  selected : 
senes,  '  only  when  they  are  old  ' ; 
otia  tuta,  '  freedom  from  labor  and 
danger ' ;  recedant,  '  retire ' ;  con- 
gesta, i  scraped  together ' ;  cibaria, 
rations,  'just  enough  to  live  on.' 
It  is  a  reminder  of  the  modern- 
ness  of  the  Augustan  Age  that 
all  these  expressions  find  easy 
counterparts  in  the  talk  of  men 
who  are  carrying  the  loads  of  life 
in  our  time. 

32.  cum  .  .  .  sint :  subjunctive 
because  it  was  a  part  of  the  indi- 
rectly quoted  speech. 

33.'  parvola :  colloquial  diminu- 
tive of  parvus,  to  contrast  with 
magni.  —  exemplo  :  dat. ;  '  for 
this  is  the  pattern  which  they 
choose  to  follow.'  —  magni  .  .  . 
laboris  :  hard-working.  This  gen- 
itive usually  has  a  noun  of  general 
meaning  with  it  (animal,  vtr),  but 
the  omission  is  not  infrequent. 
The  ant  is  occasionally  referred  to 
elsewhere  in  Latin  literature  as  a 
model  of  industry  (e-g-  Verg. 
Georg.  i,  1 86),  but  the  frequency 
of  the  comparison  in  modern  lit- 
erature is  doubtless  due  to  Prov- 
erbs 6,  6. 


29 


It  If  36] 


HORATI 


Quae,  simul  inversum  contristat  Aquarius  annum, 
non  usquam  prorepit  et  illis  utitur  ante 
quaesitis  sapiens ;  cum  te  neque  fervidus  aestus 
demoveat  lucro,  neque  hiems,  ignis,  mare,  ferrum, 
nil  obstet  tibi,  dum  ne  sit  te  ditior  alter. 

Quid  iuvat  immensum  te  argenti  pondus  et  auri 
furtim  defossa  timidum  deponere  terra  ? 


36.  Quae  :  not  exactly  =  at  ea. 
The  reply  rather  accepts  the  ant 
as  a  model,  and   criticises   those 
who  have   chosen   it   as   a  model 
for    not    following    their    pattern 
closely  enough.     'Yes,  the  ant  is 
a    good    model,    for    it    provides 
against  a  time  of  want  and,  when 
the  time  of  want  comes,  it  uses 
.  .  . '    sapiens,  38,  is  thus  an  em- 
phatic repetition  of  hand  ignara 
.  .  .  ftituri.  —  inversum :  the  year 
is  thought  of  as  a   circle,  which 
turns   back   into   itself,    and    this 
figure   finds    expression   in   many 
forms,      TrepiTeAAd/iei'os,     "vertens, 
vol-vitur.  —  Aquarius  :  the  sign  of 
the  Zodiac  which  the  sun  enters  in 
January,   the  severest  part  of  the 
Italian  winter. 

37.  utitur :  the  important  word  ; 
it  not  merely  gathers,  but  also  uses. 

38.  sapiens:    emphatic  by   its 
position  at  the   end,  where   it   is 
placed  to  make  a  strong  contrast 
with   te  at   the  beginning   of  the 
next  clause ;  '  like  the  philosopher 
it  is ;  while  you  haven't  even  ordi- 
nary sense.' 

39.  hiems  .  .  .  ferrum :  conven- 
tional obstacles.    Cf.  the  variation 


in  Sat.  2,  3,  548".,  and  the  English 
'  to  go  through  fire  and  water.1 

40.  dum  .  .  .  alter:  'as  long 
as  any  other  man  is  richer  than 
you  are.'  Lit.,  provided  that  no 
other.  With  these  words  the  true 
subject  of  the  satire  is  reached, 
the  foolish  complaints  and  false 
pleas  of  discontented  men  having 
been  pushed  aside.  At  this  point, 
too,  the  dialogue  form  and  the 
direct  address  (te,  tibi,  te)  become 
more  distinct.  Vss.  28-35,  which 
contain  the  plea  in  defence,  begin 
descriptively,  then  fall  into  infor- 
mal indirect  quotation,  and  close 
(sicut  parvola)  with  what  is  in 
effect  a  direct  quotation.  And 
the  reply,  36-40,  in  which  the  plea 
is  shown  to  be  false,  continues 
and  accentuates  the  directness  of 
dialogue,  and  thus  emphasizes  the 
point  toward  which  the  discussion 
has  been  tending.  The  whole  in- 
troduction, 1-40,  is  a  good  ex- 
ample of  the  manner  of  Horace. 

41-42.  These  lines  depict,  with 
a  heaping-up  of  epithets  (immen- 
sum, fur  tint,  defossa,  timiduni), 
the  conventional  figure  of  the 
miser,  already  familiar  to  Latin  lit- 


SERMONES 


45 


45 


'  Quod  si  comminuas,  vilem  redigatur  ad  assem.' 
At  ni  id  fit,  quid  habet  pulchri  constructus  acervus  ? 
Milia  frumenti  tua  triverit  area  centum, 


erature  in  the  Aulularia  of  Plautus. 
The  man  of  business  in  the 
Augustan  Age  had  his  investments 
and  his  varied  money  interests 
and  no  more  buried  his  coin  in  a 
hole  in  the  ground  than  the  cau- 
tious investor  of  our  time  keeps 
his  money  in  an  old  stocking. 
The  verses  really  constitute  an  ar- 
gument in  the  form  of  a  suggested 
comparison :  '  What  is  the  good 
of  it  all  to  you  ?  You're  no  better 
than  a  regular  miser.1 

43.  Quod:  usually  taken  to  be 
the  pron.,  =  at  id,  as  quae,  36,  is 
taken.  But  it  is,  I  think,  the 
ordinary  adversative  quod  si,  which 
is  freely  used  by  Horace ;  cf.  Epist. 
I,  3,  25,  Epod.  2,  39,  and  see  ex- 
amples in  Kiihner,  II,  872.  In  this 
usage  quod  con},  has  diverged  only 
slightly  from  quod  pron.,  and  when 
a  possible  antecedent  can  be  found 
before  it  (here  pondus),  it  may 
easily  be  mistaken  for  the  pron. 
But  the  thought  is  really  general : 
'but  if  you  once  begin  the 
breaking-up  process,  your  money 
is  soon  gone.'  These  words  are 
not  the  reply  of  a  real  miser,  but  a 
perfectly  sound  maxim  of  prudence 
— '  if  you  once  begin  to  dip  into  your 
capital,  it  will  soon  be  gone' ;  but 
it  is  misused  by  the  man  of  acquis- 
itive temperament  to  disguise  to 
himself  and  to  others  his  innate 


love  of  money.  In  answering  (44 
-51)  Horace  does  not  stop  to  dis- 
criminate between  the  truth  and 
the  error,  but  strikes  at  the  heart 
of  the  matter  :  'the  ultimate 
value  of  money  is  in  its  use,  not 
in  its  acquisition.' 

44.  At  ni  id  fit :  but  if  you  don't 
do  it,  that  is,  begin  to  use  it. — 
quid  .  .  .  pulchri :  the  neut.  gen. 
of  the  adj.  with  a  neut.  pron.  in- 
stead of  the  abstract  noun.  Very 
common  in  colloquial  Latin. —  acejr- 
vus :  with  a  reminiscence  of  the 
ant,  34. 

45-46.  The  figure  is  from  Lucil- 
ius,  555  f.  (Marx)  :  — 

milia  ducentum  frumenti  tollis  me- 

dimnum, 
vini  mille  cadum. 

—  triverit :  this  should  be  called 
a  fut.  perf.,  to  correspond  to  the 
fut.  capiet,  but  in  many  uses  of 
these  forms  the  Latin  did  not  make 
the  sharp  distinction  between  in- 
die, and  subj.  which  we  make  in 
our  systematic  grammar.  The 
phrase  is  in  paratactic  relation  to 
capiet,  expressing  a  hypothetical 
concession;  cf.  i,  3,  15;  I,  10, 
64 ;  2, 6, 48,  and  many  places  in  the 
Satires  and  Epistles.  —  area  :  so 
teret  area,  Verg.  Georg.  \,  192, 
with  a  slight  personification  of  the 
threshing  floor. 


HORATI 


non  tuus  hoc  capiet  venter  plus  ac  meus ;  ut  si 

reticulum  panis  venalis  inter  onusto 

forte  vehas  umero,  nihilo  plus  accipias  quam 

qui  nil  portarit.     Vel  die,  quid  referat  intra 

naturae  finis  viventi,  iugera  centum  an 

mille  aret  ?     '  At  suave  est  ex  magno  tollere  acervo.' 

Dum  ex  parvo  nobis  tantundem  haurire  relinquas, 

cur  tua  plus  laudes  cumeris  granaria  nostris  ? 


46.  hoc :  on  this  account ';  so 
I,  3,  93;  I,  6,  no,  and  often,  es- 
pecially with  comparatives.  —  ut, 
si:  to  be  taken  separately;  just 
as,  if  you  should  carry  .  .  .  you 
would  receive.  .  .  . 
.  47.  inter:  prepositions  of  two 
syllables  are  often  placed  after  the 
noun  in  Horace. 

48.  accipias :  pres. ;  when  the 
train  of  slaves  halts  for  the  noon- 
day lunch. — portavit :  perf. ;  on 
the  march,  now  past. 

49.  intra    naturae    finis:    this 
limitation,  a  doctrine  of  Stoic  phi- 
losophy, is   necessary  to  the  ar- 
gument,  which    is    directed,   not 
against  great  fortunes   in   them- 
selves, but  against  the  accumula- 
tion of  unused  wealth. 

50.  viventi:     with    refert   the 
person  interested  is  expressed  by 
the  gen.  and  no  good  parallel  to 
this  dat.  is  known.    Yet  the  gen- 
eral sense  is  such  that   the  dat. 
is  perfectly  intelligible. 

51.  At  suave  .  .  .  acervo:  the 
reply  is  not  very  effective  and  it 
is,  in  fact,  scarcely  more  than  an 
interjected  remark :  « it's  rather 


nice  to  have  a  large  bank  account 
to  draw  upon.'  The  argument  in 
52  ff.  continues  the  thought  of 
intra  naturae  finis  viventi,  with  a 
side  reference  to  ex  magno  acervo. 

52.  tantundem:    'as   much   as 
one   would  take   from   the  great 
heap.'  —  haurire:      properly    of 
drawing  off  a  liquid,   used   here 
in  anticipation  of  the  next  illus- 
tration.—  relinquas  contains  both 
the  suggestion  of  'leave  to  me  in 
spite  of  your  desire  to  get  every- 
thing' and  the  meaning  concede, 
permit,  and   in  the  latter  sense 
takes  the  infin.  haurire. 

53.  cumeris  granaria :  cumerae 
are  described  by  the  scholiast  as 
small  bins  of  wickerwork  or  large 
earthenware  jars,  used  for  storing 
small   quantities   of  grain.      The 
word   is    somewhat    rare,    but   is 
used  again  by  Horace  (Epist.  i,  7, 
30)   and  was  perhaps   familiar  to 
him  from  the  management  of  his 
own  small  farm.     It  is,  of  course, 
set  in  contrast  to  the  granaria  of 
the  large  estate,  and  the  sentence 
really  repeats  the  idea  of  45-46 
and  of  49-51. 


SERMONES 


[it  i,  61 


ut  tibi  si  sit  opus  liquid!  non  amplius  urna, 
55     vel  cyatho,  et  dicas,  '  Magno  de  flumine  mallem 

quam  ex  hoc  fonticulo  tantundem  sumere.'     Eo  fit, 

plenior  ut  si  quos  delectet  copia  iusto, 

cum  ripa  simul  avolsos  ferat  Aufidus  acer; 

at  qui  tantuli  eget  quanto  est  opus,  is  neque  limo 
60      turbatam  haurit  aquam,  neque  vitam  amittit  in  undis. 
At  bona  pars  hominum,  decepta  cupidine  falso, 


54.  ut  .  .  .  si :  just  as  if, '  that 
is  as  if;  to  be  taken  together,  not 
like  ///  si,  46,  where   ut  has   its 
own  verb. — liquid!:    here,  as  in 
so    many    cases,    Horace   begins 
with  the  general  and  advances  to 
the   specific ;     liqitidi,   instead  of 
aquae,  gives  a  sense  like  '  some- 
thing  to   drink.'      So   magtio  de 
flumine   is    general,  Aufidus,  58, 
is    specific.  —  urna :     a   pitcher, 
cyatho,  a  glass,  the  precise  meas- 
urements not  being  in  mind  here. 

55.  mallem:      /   should   have 
Preferred.     The  man  is  thought 
of   as    standing    near    the    little 
spring  (notice  hoc)  and  wishing, 
contrary  to  the  fact,  that  he  were 
near  a  river. 

56.  fonticulo:     diminutive    of 
contempt,  to  contrast  with  magno.  ' 

57.  plenior  .  .  .  iusto :     more 
than  he  ought  to  have;  the  whole 
sentence  must  be  rendered  freely. 
—  ut:  with  ferat. 

58.  cum  ripa  simul :  bank  and 
all.     The   Aufidus,  a  rapid  river 
in  Horace's  native  Apulia,  would 
undermine  its  banks  in  flood  time 
and  be  turbid  with  mud. 


59.  The  distinction  here  made 
between  eget,  "wants,  desires,  and 
opus  est,  needs,  is  fundamental  to 
the  whole   argument;    it  repeats 
intra  naturae  finis,   49  f.,  and  is 
the   opposite    of  plenior  si  quos 
delectet,  57. 

60.  turbatam,    vitam    amittit : 
these     ideas     merely    carry    the 
thought    on    into     vivid    details 
which  make  the  folly  of  the  de- 
vice   more     evident,    as,    in    the 
triumph    of   using    a     successful 
comparison   in  argument,   one   is 
easily    tempted    to    carry    it    be- 
yond the  likeness.      Horace  does 
not    mean    that    the    money    of 
the     rich     man    was    muddy    01 
'  tainted  ' ;    that  thought  was  not 
Roman ;   nor  is  he  at  this  poinl 
thinking    of    the     loss     of    real 
life   in    over-absorption    in    busi- 
ness. 

61.  At:  to  introduce  the  reply 
or    counter  -  argument    contained 
in     vs.     62.  —  bona     pars:      like 
the    English    'a   good    many.'  — 
cupidine :     masc.,    as    always    in 
Horace  and   sometimes   in   other 
writers. 


HOR.  SAT.  —  3 


33 


If  »,  62] 


HORATI 


'  Nil  satis  est,'  inquit,  '  quia  tanti  quantum  habeas  sis.' 
Quid  facias  illi  ?     lubeas  miserum  esse,  libenter 
quatenus  id  facit;  ut  quidam  memoratur  Athenis 

65      sordidus  ac  dives,  populi  contemnere  voces 
sic  solitus :  '  Populus  me  sibilat,  at  mihi  plaudo 
ipse  domi,  simul  ac  nummos  contemplor  in  area.' 
Tantalus  a  labris  sitiens  fugientia  captat 
flumina.  .  .  .     Quid  rides  ?     Mutato  nomine,  de  te 

70      fabula  narratur ;  congestis  undique  saccis 


62.  From  Lucilius,  1119  f. 
(Marx)  :  - 

aurum  atque  ambitio   specimen   vir- 

tutis  utrique  est : 
tantum    habeas,     tantum     ipse    sies 

tantique  habearis. 

—  Nil  satis  est :  '  there  is  no  such 
thing  as  the  enough  of  which  you 
speak.1     This   is  a   denial  of  the 
foundation  of  the  preceding  argu- 
ment as  expressed  in  vss.  49-51 
and    59  f.  —  sis :    subjv.    of  the 
indef.  2d  pers. 

63  f .  illi :  for  such  a  man, 
individualizing  the  subject  of  in- 
quit.  —  lubeas  miserum  esse  :  iubeo 
is  used  to  represent  the  impv. 
of  the  direct  miser  esto ;  so  iubeo 
•valere  for  the  direct  -vale.  — 
quatenus  :  always  since  in  Horace. 

—  'The   only  thing  one   can    do 
for  a  man  so  wrong-headed  is  to 
let  him  go  his  own  way,  since  he 
will    have     it     so     (libenter  .  .  . 
facit) ,   though    one    may    know 
that   it  leads   to   misery.     He   is 
as  fixed  in  his  error  as  the  man 
in   the   Greek   story,   who,   when 


he  looked  at  his  money  bags,  was 
indifferent  to  public  opinion.1 

65-66.  voces,  sibilat :  the  peo- 
ple on  the  streets  hooted  at  him 
and  hissed  him.  —  plaudo :  for  the 
contrast  with  sibilat. 

68.  Tantalus:  Horace  follows 
here  the  Homeric  ver3ion  of  the 
Tantalus  story. 

69  ff.  Quid  rides  ?  he  laughed 
because  he  did  not  think  the  old 
story  had  any  bearing  upon  his 
own  case.  The  reply  is  that  the 
picture  tallies  exactly,  that,  with 
a  change  of  name,  it  corresponds 
even  in  details.  —  undique :  with 
congestis;  'which  you  have  got 
together  by  raking  and  scraping 
everywhere.1  —  indormis :  sleep 
upon ;  because  he  cannot  be 
parted  from  them.  Cf.  Lucilius, 
243-246  (Marx)  :  — 

cui  neque  iumentum  est  nee  servus 

nee  comes  ullus : 
bulgam,  et  quidquid  habet  nummo- 

rum,  secum  habet  ipse, 
cum  bulga  cenat,  dormit,  lavit,  omnia . 

in  una 
sunt  homini  bulga:  bulga  haec  de- 

vincta  lacerto  est. 


SERMONES 


C'.  l>  79 


indormis  inhians,  et  tamquam  parcere  sacris 
cogeris,  aut  pictis  tamquam  gaudere  tabellis. 
Nescis  quo  valeat  nummus,  quern  praebeat  usum  ? 
Panis  ematur,  holus,  vini  sextarius,  adde 
75      quis  humana  sibi  doleat  natura  negatis. 

An  vigilare  metu  exanimem,  noctesque  diesque 
formidare  malos  fures,  incendia,  servos, 
ne  te  compilent  f ugientes,  hoc  iuvat  ?     Horum 
semper  ego  optarem  pauperrimus  esse  bonorum. 


—  inhians :  the  involuntary  physi- 
cal sign  of  ardent  desire.  Such  ex- 
pressions sound  exaggerated  to  us 
because  in  modern  life  we  repress 
the  signs  of  strong  emotion.  — 
tamquam  .  .  .  sacris :  he  can  make 
no  more  use  of  them  than  if  they 
were  put  out  of  his  reach  by  being 
consecrated  to  the  gods.  —  pictis 
„  .  .  tabellis :  'the  only  pleasure 
you  get  from  them  is  the  pleasure 
of  looking  at  them,'  and  that 
pleasure  could  be  just  as  well  en- 
joyed by  looking  at  a  picture  of  a 
pile  of  money  as  by  looking  at  the 
money  itself.  These  details,  like 
those  above,  41  f.,  must  not  be 
supposed  to  be  descriptive ;  they 
are  intended  to  make  the  complete 
devotion  to  business  contemptible 
by  dwelling  upon  the  inherent  like- 
ness between  the  money-maker 
and  the  conventional  figure  of  the 
miser. 

73  ff.  quo  valeat :  what  money 
is  good  for ;  repeated  in  another 
form  in  quern  praebeat  usum. 
In  harmony  with  the  preceding 
thought  the  question  here  implied 


is  answered  both  positively  and 
negatively  :  '  money  will  buy  the 
simple  necessities  of  life  (74-75), 
but  you,  by  making  it  an  object 
of  pursuit  in  itself,  are  buying  for 
yourself  a  life  of  constant  anxiety 
and  trouble '  (76-78).  —  quis  :  qui- 
bus ;  with  negatis.  The  comment 
of  Porphyrio  gives  the  sense  cor- 
rectly :  '  non  autem  ea  vult  in- 
tellegi,  quae  ad  delicias  vitae 
pertinent,  sed  quae  ad  utilitatem, 
ut  quae  frigoriaut  fami  repellendae 
et  commodiori  mansioni  sunt  ne- 
cessaria  aliaque  similia.' 

76  ff.  The  dangers  of  life  in 
Rome  are  often  alluded  to ;  cf., 
e.g.,  F.pist.  2,  I,  121  f.  and  Catul- 
lus, 23,  8-10,  on  the  freedom  of 
the  poor  man  from  such  terrors  :  — 

nihil  timetis, 

non  incendia,  non  graves  ruinas, 
nou  furta  inpia,  non  dolos  veneni. 

—  compilent  fugientes :  plunder 
you  and  run  away.  Thefugitivus 
is  a  frequent  figure  in  the  pictures 
of  ancient  society,  and  the  diffi- 
culty of  recovering  a  runaway 


35 


1. 1, 80] 


HORATI 


80        At  si  condoluit  temptatum  frigore  corpus, 
aut  alius  casus  lecto  te  adflixit,  habes  qui 
adsideat,  fomenta  paret,  medicum  roget,  ut  te 
suscitet  ac  gnatis  reddat  carisque  propinquis. 
Non  uxor  salvum  te  volt,  non  filius ;  omnes 

85   vicini  oderunt,  noti,  pueri  atque  puellae. 
Miraris,  cum  tu  argento  post  omnia  ponas, 


slave,  in  a  population  so  miscel- 
laneous, was  very  great.  — Horum : 
emphatic,  with  bononitn ;  '  if  these 
are  what  you  call  the  good  things 
of  life,  1  wish  I  might  always 
remain  a  poor  man.1 

80  ft  These  lines  are  all  ad- 
dressed by  Horace  to  his  imagined 
interlocutor,  the  over-anxious  man 
of  business,  the  direct  dialogue 
form  being  resumed  only  in  vs. 
101.  But  vss.  80-83  (beginning 
with  at,  the  usual  introduction  to 
a  counter-argument)  contain  in 
substance  a  reply  to  vss.  76-78. 
The  thought  is,  '  You  are  dwelling 
too  much  upon  the  anxieties  which 
my  money  brings  and  are  forget- 
ting its  real  benefits  ;  for  instance? 
its  value  in  a  time  of  illness.1  — 
temptatum :  almost  a  technical 
term  of  the  attack  of  illness ; 
Epist.  1, 6,  28.  — frigore :  the  chill 
of  malaria.  —  corpus :  not  body, 
but  health,  strength.  Cf.  fractus 
membra,  vs.  5.  —  adflixit:  has 
dashed  one  down  upon  his  bed. 
—  adsideat,  roget :  sit  by  your  bed- 
side, call  in ;  ordinary,  almost 
technical  terms. 

84  ff.   The  defence  closes  with 


a  note  of  false  pathos,  —  'My 
money  protects  my  life,  which  is 
precious  to  my  family.1  The  reply 
of  Horace,  vss.  84-91,  takes  up  this 
suggested  point,  passing  by  vss. 
80-83  as>  i°  reality,  unimportant. 
'  Your  life  precious  to  your  family  ! 
On  the  contrary,  you  are  an  object 
of  universal  dislike.  Your  pursuit 
of  money  not  only  makes  no 
friends  for  you,  but  even  checks 
the  natural  affections  of  your 
relatives.1  —  non  uxor:  the  reply 
begins  without  an  adversative  par- 
ticle; cf.  36,  52,  and  below,  102. 

85.  vicini,  noti  (acquaintances), 
pueri  atque  puellae :    specific  ex- 
pansions    of    the    general    term 
omnes.     Cf.,  on  the  last,  Sat.  2, 
3,   130,  insanum  te  omnes  pueri 
clamentque     pttellae.       '  Without 
distinction  of  age  or  sex '  (Green- 
ough). 

86.  post  .  .  .  ponas:  cf.Sat.  i, 
3,  92,  posit um  ante',   I,  6,  58,  cir- 
cum  .   .   .  -uectari.  —  omnia:  obj. 
of  ponas.  —  ponas,  praestet,  mere- 
aris :  the  subj.  all  hang  together. 
They  are   not    dependent    upon 
st,  for  miror  si  takes  the  indie., 
but    are     more     vaguely     hypo- 


SERMONfcS 


t«. t.  $4 


si  nemo  praestet,  quern  non  merearis,  amorem  ? 
At  si  cogaatos,  nullo  natura  labore 
quos  tibi  dat,  retinere  veils  servareque  amicos, 
90    infelix  operam  perdas,  ut  si  quis  asellum 
in  campo  doceat  parentem  currere  frenis. 

Denique  sit  finis  quaerendi,  cumque  habeas  plus, 
pauperiem  metuas  minus,  et  finire  laborem 
incipias,  parto  quod  avebas,  ne  facias  quod 


thetical,  — '  do  you  wonder  that  no 
one  should  wish  to  give  you  .  .  .  ? 
—  merearis:  not  exactly  deserve, 
but  earn,  buy  (by  giving  love 
in  return),  an  old  sense  of 
mereor. 

88-91.  Vss.  84-85  contain  a 
bare  statement  of  fact,  without  ar- 
gument, and  vss.  86-87  are  an  in~ 
terjected  remark  ('  it  is  quite  just 
and  natural')  ;  the  essence  of  the 
reply  is  in  vss.  88-91,  and  at,  the 
particle  of  retort,  is  therefore  post- 
poned to  this  point.  The  reply 
is,  'Why,  on  the  contrary,  in- 
stead of  winning  affection,  you 
have  so  distorted  your  character 
that  you  would  be  incapable  of 
retaining  the  love  of  your  nearest 
relatives,  if  you  should  now  choose 
to  attempt  it.  You  have  made 
yourself  a  beast  of  burden,  unfitted 
for  the  finer  uses  of  life.'  [A 
good  summary  of  the  arguments 
on  this  disputed  passage'  may  be 
found  in  Palmer's  edition.  The 
decisive  reason,  in  my  judgment, 
for  rejecting  an  is  that  it  is  incom- 
patible with  the  emphasis  laid 


upon  operam  perdas  by  the  com- 
parison which  follows.] 

89.  retinere  velis :  an  expan- 
sion of  retineas,  to  express  more 
clearly  the  idea  of  choice.  So 
ponas,  86,  might  have  been  ponere 
velis.  —  amicos :  predicate. 

91.  in  campo:  in  the  Campus 
Martius,  on  the  race  track.  —  pa- 
rentem .  .  .  frenis :  the  heavier 
draught  animals  were  driven  with 
a  goad ;  bits  and  reins  were  used 
only  for  racing  or  in  driving  for 
pleasure. 

92  ff.  A  conclusion,  driving 
home  the  lesson  of  the  preceding 
arguments.  —  plus:  the  standard 
of  comparison  is  left  vague  (•  more 
than  you  once  had,'  '  more  than 
most  people 1)  to  balance  minus, 
to  which  a  standard  ('  less  than 
you  have  done ')  is  easily  sup- 
plied. 

94.  incipias :  ironically  under- 
stating the  case ;  ' take  just  one 
step  toward  reasonable  modera- 
tion.'—  parto:  abl.  abs.  with  the 
antecedent  of  quod.  —  tacias:  D«U 
tral,  fare. 


37 


95J 


HORATI 


95    Vmmidius  quidam.     Non  longa  est  fabula:  dives, 
ut  metiretur  nummos,  ita  sordidus,  ut  se 
non  umquam  servo  melius  vestiret,  ad  usque 
supremum  tempus,  ne  se  penuria  victus 
opprimeret,  metuebat.     At  hunc  liberta  securi 

?oo    divisit  medium,  fortissima  Tyndaridarum. 

'  Quid  mi  igitur  suades  ?  ut  vivam  Naevius  ?  aut  sic 


95.  Vmmidius :  the  name  does 
not  occur  in  the  extant  fragments 
of  Lucilius,  but  the  story  may  well 
have  been  Lucilian.  —  Non  longa: 
the  details  are  therefore  given  with 
an  appearance  of  haste ;  this  mo- 
tive leads  also  to  the  use  of  dives 
with  an  ///-clause  of  degree  without 
tain    (or  ita,   as   with    sordidus). 
Other  instances  occur  in  Horace, 
Sat.  i,  5,  33;    i,  7,  13;   2,  7,  10, 
etc. 

96.  metiretur:  instead  of  count- 
ing   them ;     proverbial    of    great 
wealth. 

98.  supremum  tempus :    to  the 
very  last,  to  the  end  of  his  life.  — 
victus :  gen. 

99.  At :  but  matters  turned  out 
very  differently ;  after  spending  his 
life  in  providing  against  one  danger, 
he  met  with  a  wholly  unexpected 
end  and  had,  as  it  were,  wasted  his 
life  in  misdirected  prudence. 

100.  divisit  medium :    chopped 
him  in  two,  an  intentionally  short 
and  brutal  way  of  putting  it,  fol- 
lowed, in   order  to    brighten  the 
sordidness  of  the  story,  by  a  bur- 
lesque allusion   to  a  great   tragic 
legend.  —  fortissima    Tyndarida- 


rum :  i.e.  as  brave  as  any  of  the 
line  of  Tyndareus ;  with  special 
reference  to  Clytemnestra,  who 
killed  Agamemnon  with  an  ax. 

101  f.  The  man  of  business  has 
still  one  line  of  defence  left,  — 
'Your  reasoning,  carried  to  its 
legimate  conclusion,  leads  to  sheer 
waste  and  the  dissipation  of  prop- 
erty.1 •  To  which  the  answer  is 
obvious,  — '  Do  not  carry  it  so 
far ;  do  not  rush  from  one  extreme 
to  the  other,  but  keep  the  wise 
middle  course.' — Naevius,  Nomen- 
tanus :  these  names  are  used  as 
well-known  representatives  of  a 
class  —  the  spendthrifts.  A  Nae- 
vius is  mentioned  in  Sat.  2,  2,  68 
as  a  man  who  was  too  easy-going 
in  his  housekeeping,  and  this  char- 
acteristic would  fit  well  enough  with 
carelessness  in  'money  matters. 
Of  a  L.  Cassius  Nomentanus,  a 
contemporary  of  Sallust  and  no- 
torious for  his  prodigality,  Porphy- 
rio  gives  a  circumstantial  account. 
Nomentanus  is  also  a  Lucilian 
character,  and  a  Nomentanus,  ap- 
parently a  different  one,  is  men- 
tioned in  Sat.  2,  8,  23,  25,  60. 
Precise  identification  is  impossible 


SERMONES 


[I,  i,  108 


ut  Nomentanus  ? '     Pergis  pugnantia  secum    % 
frontibus  adversis  componere  ?    Non  ego,  avarum 
cum  veto  te  fieri,  vappam  iubeo  ac  nebulonem. 
105  Est  inter  Tanain  quiddam  socerumque  Viselli. 
Est  modus  in  rebus,  sunt  certi  denique  fines, 
quos  ultra  citraque  nequit  consistere  rectum. 
Illuc,  unde  abii,  redeo,  qui  nemo  ut  avarus 


102-104.  Pergis :  often  used 
without  an  interrogative  particle 
i  n  half-exclamatory  sentences.  — 
pugnantia  secum,  frontibus  adver- 
sis, componere :  these  three  ex- 
pressions combine  to  suggest  from 
different  sides  the  figure  of  two 
gladiators,  matched  (componere 
is  the  technical  word)  against  one 
another.  So  the  argument  «ofvss. 
joi  f.  sets  up  the  figure  of  the 
iiappa  ac  nebulo  to  destroy  the 
effect  of  the  figure  of  the  avarus, 
as  described  in  the  body  of  the 
satire. 

105.  The  reference  is  probably 
to  some  Greek  saying,  then  well 
enough  known  to  make  a  mere 
allusion  intelligible ;  at  any  rate, 
the  names  represent  two  widely 
separated  extremes. 

107.  ultra  citraque :  the  safe 
'  middle  ground  '  is  the  only  place 
where  the  right  (opdov)  can  find 
a  sure  standing  place. 

108  f .  Illuc,  unde  abii,  redeo  : 
this  is  not  perfectly  accurate.  To 
return  precisely  to  the  opening 
question,  '  What  is  the  source 
of  our  discontent  ? '  would  be  ab- 
surd, since  the  whole  satire  has 


been  spent  in  setting  forth  the 
answer  to  that  question.  But  a 
repetition  of  the  text  is  a  very  suit- 
able way  of  bringing  the  sermon 
to  its  conclusion.  Horace  there- 
fore repeats  the  opening  words 
(qui  nemo  se  probet  =  qui  fit  ut 
nemo  contentus  vivaf),  attaching 
them  somewhat  forcedly  to  the 
leading  clause  illuc  redeo  and  in- 
serting the  substance  of  the  answer 
in  the  brief  phrase  ^ft  avarus,  which 
is  taken  up  more  fully  in  vss.  1 10  ff. 
The  obscurity  produced  by  using 
qui  nemo  instead  of  qui  fit  nt  nemo 
and  by  making  it  depend  upon 
illuc  redeo  is  increased  by  the  use 
of  ut  avarus  ( =  '  because  of  the 
love  of  money  ' ;  cf.  ut  male  sanos, 
Epist.  i,  19,  3;  ut  capitis  minor, 
Odes  3,  5,  42),  which  is  easily  mis- 
taken for  a  repetition  of  the  ut  in 
qui  fit  ut.  The  obscurity  of  the 
passage  has  led  copyists  into  mak- 
ing various  changes  in  the  text, 
nemo  ut,  nemon  ut.  The  true 
reading  was  found  only  in  a  single 
manuscript.  '  I  come  back  to  my 
starting  point,  the  discontent  of 
men,  which  comes  from  their  love 
of  money  and  their  envy.' 


39 


1, 1, 109] 


HORATI 


se  probet  ac  potius  laudet  diversa  sequentis, 

quodque  aliena  capella  gerat  distentius  uber, 

tabescat,  neque  se  maiori  pauperiorum 

turbae  comparet,  hunc  atque  hunc  superare  laboret. 

Sic  festinanti  semper  locupletior  obstat, 

ut,  cum  carceribus  missos  rapit  ungula  currus, ' 

instat  equis  auriga  suos  vincentibus,  ilium 

praeteritum  temnens  extremes  inter  euntem. 

Inde  fit,  ut  raro,  qui  se  vixisse  beatum 

dicat,  et,  exacto  contentus  tempore,  vita 

cedat  uti  conviva  satur,  reperire  queamus. 


no.  A  mean  and  petty  illustra- 
tion is  chosen  intentionally. 

112.  hunc    atque    hunc:    'first 
one  and  then  another.'     The  ad- 
versative idea,  as  often  in  Latin, 
is  left  unexpressed. 

113.  Sic  :      with     festinanti] 
'one  who  is  in  such  haste  to  be 
rich.' 

1 14  ff.  The  figure  of  the  chariot 
race  is  used  with  a  serious  effect 
which  suits  the  tone  of  vss.  ni- 
119.  It  is  a  natural  comparison, 
often  used  in  Latin  literature,  and 
it  is  not  necessary  to  suppose  that 
this  passage  is  either  copied  from 
or  imitated  in  Vergil,  Georg.  i, 
512  ff.  :- 

Vt  cum  carceribus  sese  effudere  quad- 
rigae, 

addunt  in  spatia  et  frustra  retinacula 
tendens 

fertur  equis  auriga,  neque  audit  cur- 
rus  habenas. 

The  only  similarity  is  in  the  use 


of  technical  terms.  —  carceribus . 
the  stalls  in  which  the  chariots 
stood  ready  to  be  started  ^missos) 
by  the  raising  of  the  barrier.  — 
rapit  ungula :  so  quatit  ungula, 
Ennius,  Ann.  224  Vahl.,  Verg. 
Aen.  8,  596,  in  the  same  place  in 
the  verse.  —  ilium :  the  one,  —  ex- 
tremes inter :  cf.  venalis  inter, 
47,  n. 

117-119.  Inde  fit :  this  also,  like 
vs.  1 08,  is  a  return  to  the  begin- 
ning of  the  satire,  qui  fit,  but 
with  a  more  sober  restraint  (raro 
instead  of  nemo)  and  with  an 
effective  use  of  the  figure  of  the 
satisfied  feaster.  This  is  another 
reminiscence  of  Lucretius,  3, 

938:- 

Cur    non    ut    plenus  vitae    conviva 

recedis, 
aequo  animoque  capis  securam,  stulte, 

quietem? 

Compare  also  the  closing  lines  of 
Bryant's  Thanatopsis. 


40 


SERMONES  [i,  i,  121 

120        lam  satis  est.     Ne  me  Crispini  scrinia  lippi 
compilasse  putes,  verbum  non  amplius  addam. 

120-121.    It  is  thoroughly  char-  Porphyrio  to  be  Plotius  Crispinus, 

acteristic  of  Horace  to  turn  abruptly  a  writer  of  much  verse  (cf.  Sat.  i, 

from  grave  to  gay,  —  ridentem  di-  4,  14)  and  a  teacher  of  Stoic  doc- 

cereverum,  —  and  the  very  abrupt-  trines  {Sat.  1,3,  139;  2,7,45). — 

ness   of  the   change   is   often   an  scrinia  :  cylindrical  boxes  in  which 

effective  enforcement  of  the  moral.  the    papyrus    rolls    were   kept. — 

Several    of  the    Satires    will    be  lippi :     personal    peculiarities    or 

found  to  close  with  a  jest.    Cf.  also  defects,  of  which  we  should  think 

the  close  of  some  of  the  Odes ;  I,  it  discourteous  to  speak,  were  fre- 

6 ;  2,  i  ;  and  especially  3,  3,  guo,  quently  matter  for  ridicule  to  the 

musa,  tendis,  —  Crispini:  said  by  ancients. 


This  satire  was  written  before  3,  since  the  death  of  Tigellius,  which 
is  there  (vs.  3  ff.)  referred  to  as  having  occurred  some  time  before,  is 
here  spoken  of  as  a  quite  recent  event,  and  before  4,  where  (in  vs.  91) 
a  line  of  this  satire  (vs  27)  is  quoted.  It  is  therefore  to  be  placed  in 
the  group  of  early  satires,  with  7  and  8,  written  before  the  introduction 
to  Maecenas  in  39  or  38  B.C. 

The  announced  subject  of  the  satire  is  the  tendency  of  men  to  run  to 
extremes,  their  inability  to  keep  to  the  golden  mean.  Of  this  tendency 
the  first  part,  down  to  vs.  28,  gives  various  illustrations,  not  lacking  in 
humor  and  unobjectionable  in  tone.  But  the  particular  illustration 
which  is  treated  in  detail,  and  which  occupies  the  rest  of  the  satire,  is 
excess  in  sensual  indulgence,  and  especially  the  vice  of  adultery,  which 
had  become  rife  in  the  Ciceronian  period  and  was  still  increasing  in 
Roman  society. 

The  satire  betrays  in  various  ways  the  immaturity  of  the  writer.  It 
is  the  most  personal  of  Horace's  writings ;  it  is  coarse  in  expression, 
and  it  is  intentionally  sensational  in  manner.  These  characteristics  are 
in  part  the  result  of  a  too  close  adherence  to  the  manner  of  Lucilius,  in 
part  of  a  desire  to  attract  attention,  in  part  of  the  bitter  and  rebellious 
feeling  of  the  writer.  Yet  it  is  not  difficult  to  find  in  it,  as  undoubtedly 
Vergil  and  Varius  did,  the  indications  of  what  the  writer  was  later  to 
become. 

4* 


I,  2,   I] 


HORATI 


Ambubaiarum  conlegia,  pharmacopolae, 
mendici,  mimae,  balatrones,  hoc  genus  omne 
maestum  ac  sollicitum  est  cantoris  morte  Tigelli : 
quippe  benignus  erat.     Contra  hie,  ne  prodigus  esse 
dicatur  metuens,  inopi  dare  nolit  amico, 
frigus  quo  duramque  famem  propellere  possit. 
Hunc  si  perconteris,  avi  cur  atque  parentis 
praeclaram  ingrata  stringat  mains  ingluvie  rem, 
omnia  conductis  coemens  obsonia  nummis, 
sordidus  atque  animi  quod  parvi  nolit  haberi, 
respondet.     Laudatur  ab  his,  culpatur  ab  illis. 
Fufidius  vappae  famam  timet  ac  nebulonis, 


1.  Ambubaiarum:     flute-girls, 
like  the  copa  Syrisca  of  Vergil's 
poem,  whose  associations  are  called 
conlegia,  guilds,  with  a   touch   of 
derision. 

2.  mendici:    the  organizations 
of     begging      priests.  —  mimae  : 
women  were  not  allowed  to  act  in 
the  more  respectable  dramas,  but 
only  in  the  farces  called  ntimi.  — 
balatrones :    cf.   the   use    of   this 
name  for  a  parasite  as   a  proper 
name  in  Sat.  2,  8,  21  and  40. 

3.  Tigelli:  see  note  on  Sat.  \, 

3,4- 

4.  benignus:    kind,  generous', 
the  word  is  used  as  if  in  quotation. 
—  hie  :  this  other  man,  the  mean- 
ing being  made  plainer  by  contra. 

7.  Hunc :  a  third  person,  not 
the  same  as  hie,  4.  Whatever 
slight  confusion  is  caused  by  the 
use  of  the  same  pronoun  is  dis- 
pelled by  the  next  line,  which 


shows  that  this  man  was  a  spend- 
thrift. 

8.  ingrata :    unprofitable,   that 
gives  no  adequate  return  for  the 
money  spent  upon  it.  —  stringat : 
strips,  as  leaves  from  a  tree. 

9.  omnia  .  .  .  obsonia :  all  kinds 
of  dainties,   everything   that    his 
appetite     suggested.  —  conductis  : 
hired,  i.e.  borrowed  at  interest. 

10.  animi  .  .  .  parvi :    mean ; 
the  opposite  of  benignus,  4. 

11.  his,  illis :  one  side,  the  other 
side,  people  who  are  of  the  same 
or  of  the  opposite  opinion. 

12.  Fufidius :  a  well-known  fam- 
ily name,  but  the  individual  here 
referred  to  is  unknown.     He  is  a 
money-lender  who    combines    in 
himself  the  extreme  of  great  wealth 
—  which  he  gets  by  discreditable 
methods  —  with    the    extreme    of 
stinginess     in    the    spending    of 
money  upon  himself. 


42 


SERMONES 


LI.  2,  23 


[dives  agris,  dives  positis  in  faenore  nummis]; 
quinas  hie  capiti  mercedes  exsecat,  atque 

15      quanto  perditior  quisque  est,  tanto  acrius  urget; 
nomina  sectatur  modo  sumpta  veste  virili 
sub  patribus  duris  tironum.     '  Maxime  '  quis  non 
'  luppiter ! '  exclamat,  simul  atque  audivit  ?     '  At  in  se 
pro  quaestu  sumptum  facit  hie.'     Vix  credere  possis 

20      quam  sibi  non  sit  amicus,  ita  ut  pater  ille,  Terenti 
fabula  quern  miserum  gnato  vixisse  fugato 
inducit,  non  se  peius  cruciaverit  atque  hie. 

Si  quis  nunc  quaerat,  '  Quo  res  haec  pertinet? '  iltuc  : 


14.  quinas  .  .  .  mercedes :   the 
usual  rate  of  interest  was  one  per 
cent  a  month,  but  Fufidius  collected 
five  times  this  rate.  — capiti  -.from 
the  principal.  —  exsecat :  the  verb 
is  chosen  to  express  the  severity  of 
the  demand ;  cuts  off  beforehand, 
as  in   discounting.      In   all  such 
matters   the   methods   of  Roman 
business    were   less    systematized 
than  the  banking  of  modern  times. 

15.  perditior :  nearer  to  ruin. 

1 6  f.  nomina  :  names,  but  with 
a  suggestion  of  'accounts,'  as  in 
English.  —  tironum :  young  men 
who  had  just  put  on  the  toga  viri- 
lis  and  whose  fathers  still  kept 
them  on  small  allowances  would 
be  the  natural  prey  of  the  unscru- 
pulous money-lender. 

19.  pro  quaestu  :  in  proportion 
to  his  gains ;  the  supposed  excla- 
mation of  some  one  who  hears  of 
his  great  income.  This  suggests 
at  once  the  strangeness  of  the  con- 
trast between  his  wealth  and  his 


meanness,  which  is  carried  out  in 
the  next  phrase,  vix  credere  possis. 
20.  quam  .  .  .  non  .  .  .  amicus: 
not  exactly  the  same  as  quam  ini- 
micus,  but  'how  far  he  is  from 
being  kind  to  himself.'  —  pater 
ille :  a  father  in  the  play  of  Ter- 
ence, the  Heautontimorumenos 
(Self-tormentor),  who,  because 
he  thinks  that  his  harshness  has 
driven  his  son  away  from  home, 
refuses  himself  all  comforts  until 
the  son  returns. 

22.  inducit:     'brings    on    the 
stage,'   but   used   like   a  verb  of 
saying  with  the  infin.  inxisse ;  rep- 
resents as  having  lived.  —  crucia- 
verit :    a   repetition   of  the  word 
timorumenoS)  in  the  title  of  the 
play. 

23.  Quo . . .  pertinet :  what' >s the 
point  of  all  this?    Cf.  Sat.   i,  i, 
15  f.,  quo  rem  deducam,  and  Sat. 
2,  7,  2 1 .  —  illuc  :  the  answer  to  the 
question,  which  is  then  explained 
in  the  next  line. 


43 


1,  2,  24]  HORATl 

dum  vitant  stulti  vitia,  in  contraria  currimt. 
25      Malthinus  tunicis  demissis  ambulat ;  est  qui 

inguen  ad  obscenum  subductis  usque  facetus. 

Pastilles  Rufillus  olet,  Gargonius  hircum. 

Nil  medium  est.     Sunt  qui  nolint  tetigisse  nisi  illas, 

quarum  subsuta  talos  tegat  instita  veste ; 
30      contra  alius  nullam  nisi  olenti  in  fornice  stantem. 

Quidam  notus  homo  cum  exiret  fornice,  '  Macte 

virtute  esto,'  inquit  sententia  dia  Catonis. 

'  Nam  simul  ac  verias  inflavit  taetra  libido, 

hue  iuvenes  aequum  est  descendere,  non  alienas 
35      permolere  uxores.'     '  Nolim  laudarier,'  inquit, 

'  sic  me,'  mirator  cunni  Cupiennius  albi. 

Audire  est  operae  pretium,  procedere  recte 

qui  moechos  non  voltis,  ut  omni  parte  laborent; 

utque  illis  multo  corrupta  dolore  voluptas 

25-27.    Two  illustrations  of  ex-  uses   this   kind   of  periphrasis  in 

cess,   each    described    in   a    line,  parody  of  the  heroic   style,  e.g. 

followed   by  two   other  extremes  Sat.  2,  I,  72. 

condensed  into  a  single  line.     Vs.  35.    laudarier:  the  old  form  of 

27  is  quoted  in  Sat.  I,  4,  92  as  an  the  infin.  pass.,  used  also  in  78 

example  of  jesting  that  is  really  and  104  with  intentional  archaism, 
harmless  and  in  fact  it  is  not  likely  36.   Cupiennius  :    identified   by 

that  any  of  the  names  was  meant  the    scholiast   with   a   certain    C. 

to  designate  an  individual.  Cupiennius  Libo,  a  friend  of  Au- 

29.  instita:  a  border  sewed  on  gustus.     But    it    is    much    more 
to  the  stola  of  the  married  woman,  likely  that  the  name  is  selected 
so  that  the  garment  came  down  for  its  suggestion  of  cupio.  —  albi: 
to  the  ankles.  of    the    white    dress    of   married 

30.  contra  alius  :  cf.  contra  hie,  4.      women,   in  contrast   to   the  dark 
31  f.   Macte  virtute  esto :  a  col-      toga  worn  by  prostitutes. 

loquial  phrase  of  approval ;    well  37  f .   A  parody  of  a  line  of  En- 

done  !  thafs  rig/it.  —  sententia  dia  nius  (454  Vahl.),  audire  est  operae 

Catonis  :  formal  and  epic ;   Lucil-  pretium,  procedere  recte  \  qui  rein 

ius,  1316  (Marx),  has  Valeri  sen-  Romanam  .  .  .  voltis,    with   em- 

tentia  dia,  and  Horace  frequently  phatic  insertion  of  non. 

44 


SERMONES  [i,  2,  55 

40      atque  haec  rara  caclat  dura  inter  saepe  pericla. 
Hie  se  praecipitem  tecto  dedit ;  ille  flagellis 
ad  mortem  caesus ;  fugiens  hie  decidit  acrem 
praedonum  in  turbam  ;  dedit  hie  pro  corpore  nummos ; 
hunc  perminxerunt  calones ;  quin  etiam  illud 

45      accidit,  ut  quidam  testes  caudamque  salacem 

demeteret  ferro.     '  lure,'  omnes;  Galba  negabat. 
Tutior  at  quanto  merx  est  in  classe  secunda, 
libertinarum  dico,  Sallustius  in  quas 
non  minus  insanit,  quam  qui  moechatur.     At  hie  si, 

50      qua  res,  qua  ratio  suaderet  quaque  modeste 

munifico  esse  licet,  vellet  bonus  atque  benignus 
esse,  daret  quantum  satis  esset  nee  sibi  damno 
dedecorique  foret.     Verum  hoc  se  amplectitur  uno, 
hoc  amat  et  laudat,  '  Matronam  nullam  ego  tango.' 

55      Vt  quondam  Marsaeus,  amator  Originis  ille, 

40.   rara :  with  haec  (voluptas)  that  Horace  addressed  a  friendly 

in    a    predicate    use,    contrasting  ode  (Carm.  2,  2)  to  him. 
with  saepe.  —  dura :  with  pericla.  50.   res,  ratio :  the  two  leading 

43.   pro  corpore  :  paid  a  ransom  motives  for  self-restraint,  care  for 

to  save  himself  from  the  penalty  his  property  and  good  sense, 
which  might  have  been  inflicted          51.   licet:     the   verb   itself   ex- 

on  him.  presses  by  its  meaning  the  shading 

46.    Galba :  this  may  be  a  ref-  which  in  suaderet  is  expressed  by 

erence  to  a  known  person,  a  jurist  the  mode.  —  bonus  atque  benignus  : 

who  is  said   by  the   scholiast   to  as  if  quoted  from  those  who  would 

have  been  himself  caught  in  adul-  receive  the  money.     Cf.  benignus, 

tery.    This  would  explain  the  point  vs.  4. 

o( negabat;  as  a  jurist  he  dissented  53.    hoc  .  .  .  uno:  explained  in 

from  the  general  judgment.     But  the  words  matronant  .  .  .  tango. 
the  story  of  the  scholiast  may  have  55.    Originis  :  said  by  the  scho- 

started  with  negabat.  Hast  to  have  been  a  mima  (cf.  vs. 

48.   Sallustius :    not    the    his-  2)  of  Cicero's  time.     Marsaeus  is 

torian.     It    may    have    been    his  unknown  and  this  is  therefore  an 

nephew  and  heir,  but  this  is  not  apparent  personality,  which  in  re- 

easily    reconciled    with    the    fact  ality  refers  to  a  long-past  scandal. 

45 


if  2,  56]  HORATI 

qui  patrium  mimae  donat  fundumque  laremque, 
'.Nil  fuerit  mi,'  inquit,  'cum  uxoribus  unquatn  alienis.1 
Verum  est  cum  mimis,  est  cum  meretricibus,  unde 
fama  malum  gravius  quam  res  trahit.     An  tibi  abunde 

60      personam  satis  est,  non  illud,  quidquid  ubique 
officit,  evitare  ?     Bon  am  deperdere  famam, 
rem  patris  oblimare,  malum  est  ubicunque.    Quid  inter- 
est in  matrona,  ancilla  peccesne  togata  ? 
Villius  in  Fausta  Sullae  gener,  hoc  miser  uno 

65      nomine  deceptus,  poenas  dedit  usque  superque 
quam  satis  est,  pugnis  caesus  ferroque  petitus, 
exclusus  fore,  cum  Longarenus  foret  intus. 
Huic  si  mutonis  verbis  mala  tanta  videntis 
diceret  haec  animus  '  Quid  vis  tibi  ?    Numquid  ego  a  te 

70      magno  prognatum  deposco  consule  cunnum 
velatumque  stola,  mea  cum  conferbuit  ira  ? ' 
quid  responderet?     '  Magno  patre  nata  puella  est.' 
At  quanto  meliora  monet  pugnantiaque  istis 

59.  fama,  res :  the  same  com-  Fausta  was  the  daughter  of  Sulla 
bination  (in  reversed  order)  that  and  the  wife  of  Milo.     Villius  was 
is  used  in  damno  dedecorique,  vs.  one  of  her  lovers,  called  Sullae 
52  f.,  to  express  from  both  sides  gener  in  derision,  and  Longarenus 
the  consequences  of  excess.  was   another  lover.  —  in  Fausta: 

60.  personam :    the    character,  in   the  case  of  Fausta,  with  the 
the  rftle,  of  a  moechus,  contrasted  verbal  phrase  poenas  dedit.  —  hoc 
with  illud  .  .  .  officit,  the  results  .  .  .  uno  :  abl.  with  miser  decep- 
of  excess,  which  come  in  any  case  tits,  with   nomine  (i.e.  the   noble 
{ubique).  name    Fausta)    in   apposition.  — 

62.  ubicunque  :    repeating  ubi-      fore :  abl.  with  exclusus. 

que ;  f  whatever  persona  you  may  68-72.     si   ...    diceret :    the 

assume.'  conclusion  is  responderet,  72. 

63.  togata :    cf.  note  on   albi,  73.   meliora   .    .    .    pugnantia : 
36.  after  monet,  the  subject  of  which 

64-67.    This  is  also  a  reference      is  natitra.  —  pugnantia  istis  :  '  op- 
to    a  scandal   of   Cicero's    time.       posite  to  what  you  have  said,'  i.e. 

46 


SERMONES  [i,  2,  89 

dives  opis  natura  suae,  tu  si  modo  recte 
75      dispensare  velis  ac  non  fugienda  petendis 
immiscere.     Tuo  vitio  rerumne  labores, 
nil  referre  putas  ?     Quare,  ne  paeniteat  te, 
desine  matronas  sectarier,  unde  laboris 
plus  haurire  mali  est  quam  ex  re  decerpere  fructus. 
80      Nee  magis  huic  inter  niveos  viridisque  lapillos, 

sit  licet  hoc,  Cerinthe,  tuum,  tenerum  est  femur  aut 

crus 

rectius,  atque  etiam  melius  persaepe  togatae  est. 
Adde  hue,  quod  mercem  sine  f  ucis  gestat,  aperte 
quod  venale  habet  ostendit,  nee,  si  quid  honesti  est, 
85      iactat  habetque  palam,  quaerit  quo  turpia  celet. 

Regibus  hie  mos  est :  ubi  equos  mercantur,  opertos 
inspiciunt,  ne,  si  facies,  ut  saepe,  decora 
molli  fulta  pede  est,  emptorem  inducat  hiantem, 
quod  pulchrae  climes,  breve  quod  caput,  ardua  cervix. 

to   magno  patre   .    .    .  est,      Cf.  sit  ...  tuum :  although  this  may 

pugnantia  secum,  Sat.  I,  I,  102.  be  your  judgment,   i.e.   that   the 

74.  dives  opis  natura  suae  :  a  adornment  of  the  married  woman 
doctrine  of  Epicurean  philosophy,  adds  to  her  attractions.    Cerinthus 
stated  by  Cicero,  de  Fin.  i,  13,  45  is  unknown. 

.  .  .  'ipsa  natura  divitias,  quibus  84.   honesti:    used   of  physical 

contenta  sit,  et   parabiles  et  ter-  charms    for     the     contrast    with 

minatas    habet.1      The   figure    is  turpia. 

carried  on  in  dispensare,  '  to  deal  86-89.  opertos:  i.e.  they  cover 

out '  like  a  careful  steward.  those  parts  of  the  horse  which  by 

75.  fugienda    petendis:      used  their  beauty  might  attract  the  pur- 
again  in  Sat.  i,  3,  114,  as  equiva-  chaser  —  emptorem  inducat  —  the 
lent  to  bona  diversis.  parts  specified  in  vs.  89,  in  order 

76.  Tuo  vitio  rerumne :  cf.  Sat.  to  examine  with  the  more  coolness 
I,  10,  57  f.,  num  illius,  num  rerum  of  judgment  the  parts  which  might 
.  .  .  natura.  be  unsound,  molli  .  .  .  pede.   The 

80-82.   huic  :      the     matrona ;      custom,  if  there  ever  was  such  a 
contrasted    with    togatae,    82.  —       custom,  is  not  elsewhere  alluded  to. 

47 


I,  2,  90]  HORATI 

90      Hoc  illi  recte  :  ne  corporis  optima  Lyncei 
contemplere  oculis,  Hypsaea  caecior  ilia, 
quae  mala  sunt,  spectes.     O  crus  !  O  brachia  !  Verum 
depygis,  nasuta,  brevi  latere  ac  pede  longo  est. 
Matronae  praeter  faciem  nil  cernere  possis, 

95      cetera,  ni  Catia  est,  demissa  veste  tegentis. 
Si  interdicta  petes,  vallo  circumdata,  nam  te 
hoc  facit  insanum,  multae  tibi  turn  efficient  res, 
custodes,  lectica,  ciniflones,  parasitae, 
ad  talos  stola  demissa  et  circumdata  palla, 

too    plurima,  quae  invideant  pure  apparere  tibi  rem. 
Altera,  nil  obstat :  Cois  tibi  paene  videre  est 
ut  nudam,  ne  crure  malo,  ne  sit  pede  turpi ; 
metiri  possis  oculo  latus.     An  tibi  mavis 
insidias  fieri  pretiumque  avellier  ante 

105    quam  mercem  ostendi  ?     '  Leporem  venator  ut  alta 
in  nive  sectetur,  positum  sic  tangere  nolit,' 

90  f.  Lyncei :    famous   for    his  her  house  (ciniflones,  hairdressers, 

power    of    sight;     cf.    Epist.    I,  parasitae,   at    the    table),    which 

I,  28,  non  pcs  is  oculo  quantum  made  it  difficult  to  find  her  alone. 

contendere    Lynceus.  —  ne    .    .    .  100.    invideant   .  .  .    apparere : 

contemplere  :  a  parenthetic  clause  the  construction  is  unusual,  but  it 

of  purpose. —  Hypsaea:  unknown  is   found  in   Plautus,  e.g.   Bacch. 

except  by  a  note   in  the  scholia,  543.    Cf.  the  infin.  after  prohibere 

which  does  not  really  explain  the  101.   Altera:  without  a  verb,  to 

allusion.  give   a  conversational   tone ;   the 

96  f .   vallo  circumdata :   figura-  thought   is  easily  filled  out  from 

tive,  as  an  amplification  of  inter-  pure  apparere  and  from  the  rest 

dicta,  and  itself  further  amplified  in  of  vs.  101.  —  Cois:  abl.  neuter.    A 

vs.  98-100. — facit  insanum:  the  transparent    kind    of    silk    made 

fact  that  there   are   difficulties  in  originally  in  the  island  of  Cos. 

the  way.  105-108.  ut :  how,  the  clause  de- 

98.   The  attendants  of  a  great  pends  upon  cantat.    These  verses 

lady,  either  in  the  streets  (custodes,  give  the  substance  of  an  epigram 

lectica  —  with  the  bearers)  or  in  of  Callimachus   {Anth.  Pal.,  xii, 

48 


SERMONES  [i,  2,  122 

cantat  et  apponit :  '  Meus  est  amor  huic  similis  ;  nam 
transvolat  in  raedio  posita  et  fugientia  captat.' 
Hiscine  versiculis  speras  tibi  posse  dolores 

no    atque  aestus  curasque  gravis  e  pectore  pelli  ? 

Nonne,  cupidinibus  statuat  natura  modum  quern, 
quid  latura  sibi,  quid  sit  dolitura  negatum, 
quaerere  plus  prodest  et  inane  abscindere  soldo  ? 
Num,  tibi  cum  fauces  urit  sitis,  aurea  quaeris 

115    pocula  ?     Num  esuriens  fastidis  omnia  praeter 

pavonem  rhombumque?     Tument   tibi   cum  inguina, 

num,  si 

ancilla  aut  verna  est  praesto  puer,  impetus  in  quern 
continue  fiat,  malis  tentigine  rumpi  ? 
Non  ego :  namque  parabilem  amo  venerem  f acilemque. 

120    Illam,  '  Post  paulo,'  '  Sed  pluris,'  '  Si  exierit  vir,' 
Gallis,  hanc  Philodemus  ait  sibi,  quae  neque  magno 
stet  pretio  neque  cunctetur,  cum  est  iussa  venire. 

102)  in  which   the  lover  is  com-  112.   dolitura  negatum :  cf.  Sat. 

pared  to  a  hunter;    the  game  that  i,  i,  75. 

he  prefers  is  that  which  costs  him  113.    inane:  the  void  or  space 

trouble  in  the  pursuit  and  capture.  of  Epicurean  physics,  in  which  the 

—  apponit :  the  point  of  the  epi-  atoms  or  matter  (solidunt)  moved, 

gram    is    here    added    in    direct  But     here    figuratively,    like    the 

quotation    and    in    a    very    close  English    substance   and    shadow, 

paraphrase,   almost   a   translation  '  to  distinguish  the  mere  appear- 

of  the  original.     The  comparison  ance  from  the  reality.' 

was    probably    common    enough.  116.  pavonem  rhombumque:  the 

Ovid    (Amor.  2,  9,  9)    has   com-  fashion  which  dictated  the  use  of 

pressed  the  whole  into  a  single  line.  certain  fish  or  fowls  as  a  part  of 

109-110.    versiculis:     'do    you  every   formal    dinner    is    directly 

think  that  such  verses  are  a  heal-  ridiculed  in  other  satires,  esp.  Sat. 

ing  charm    which   will  cure   your  2,  2,  23  ff.,  and  48  ff. 

troubles?'  120-122.    A  reference  to  an  epi- 

ui.   natura  modum  :  the  same  gram  of  Philodemus,  an  Epicurean 

thought  is  in  Sat.  i,  i,  49  f.,  59,  73.  of  Cicero's  time.     This  particular 
HOR.  SAT.  —  4                    49 


I,  2,  123]  HORATI 

Candida  rectaque  sit,  munda  hactenus,  ut  neque  longa 
nee  magis  alba  velit,  quam  dat  natura,  videri. 

125    Haec  ubi  supposuit  dextro  corpus  mini  lacvum, 
Ilia  et  Egeria  est :  do  nomen  quodlibet  illi, 
nee  vereor,  ne,  dum  futuo,  vir  rure  recurrat, 
ianua  frangatur,  latret  canis,  undique  magno 
pulsa  domus  strepitu  resonet,  vepallida  lecto 

130    desiliat  mulier,  miseram  se  conscia  clamet, 

cruribus  haec  metuat,  doti  deprensa,  egomet  mi. 
Discincta  tunica  fugiendum  est  ac  pede  nudo, 
ne  nummi  pereant  aut  puga  ant  denique  fama. 
Deprendi  miserum  est;  Fabio  vel  iudice  vincam. 

epigram    is   not   extant,  but    the  130.   conscia:  the  slave-woman 

construction  reflects  the  colloquial  who  was  the  accomplice 
tone  ;  ' "  that  one  (the  matrona)  134.  Fabio:  probably  the  Stoic 

for  the  Galli^  this  one  (the  liber-  philosopher  referred  to  in  Sat.  i, 

tina)  for  me,11  says  Philodemus.'  I,    14.     The    Stoic   doctrine   was 

123.    munda:     neat,    but    with  that  no  evil  could  befall  the  true 

the    suggestion    that    adornment  philosopher.     The  point  therefore 

may   be    carried    too   far.  —  hac-  is   that  the   misfortune   of  being 

tenus :  only  so  far.  caught  is  so  great  that  not  even 

129.  vepallida:    the    prefix    is  a  Stoic,  in  spite  of  his  doctrine, 

here  intensive,  very  pale ;   else-  could  deny  that  it  was  miserum. 
where     it     is     negative,     as     in 
vesanus  —  insanus. 


The  only  indication  of  the  date  of  this  satire  is  the  allusion  in  vs. 
64,  which  implies  a  considerable  degree  of  intimacy  with  Maecenas,  to 
whom  Horace  was  introduced  in  the  year  38.  In  style  and  thought  it 
is  one  of  the  more  mature  satires  of  the  First  Book. 

1  Musical  people  are  odd.  Look  at  Tigellius,  a  bundle  of  inconsistent 
absurdities.  "  Very  fine,"  says  some  one,  "  but  how  about  you,  who 
criticize  others  with  so  much  penetration  ?  Are  you  faultless  your- 
self ?"  "Not  at  all,"  answers  the  critic,  ubut,  frankly,  I  don't  think 

50 


SERMONES  [i,  3 

my  faults  are  as  bad  as  his.11  No,  you  do  not,  and  your  self-satisfied 
attitude  is  a  proper  subject  for  a  satire. 

'  Your  habit  of  criticism  brings  its  natural  result,  that  others  criticize 
you,  and  both  you  and  they,  seizing  upon  some  trifling  fault,  fail  to  see 
the  finer  and  nobler  qualities  and,  still  worse,  make  no  effort  to  correct 
your  own  faults. 

'I  wish  that  we  might  rather  be  as  blind  to  the  faults  of  a  friend  as 
a  lover  is  to  the  defects  in  the  face  of  his  mistress  or,  if  see  them  we 
must,  might  treat  them  with  the  indulgent  tenderness  of  a  father  toward 
his  child,  interpreting  bluntness  as  frankness  and  a  hot  temper  as  only 
an  excess  of  high  spirit. 

*  But  we  follow  just  the  opposite  course  and  turn  good  qualities  into 
faults,  modesty  into  stupidity,  prudence  into  trickiness.  A  fairer  judg- 
ment would  show  us  that  virtues  are  more  common  than  vices  and 
would  teach  us  to  exchange  pardon  rather  than  censure. 

'  A  reasonable  philosophy  for  a  world  of  faulty  men  should  not  be 
over-strict.  To  break  a  friendship  for  some  trifling  breach  of  good 
manners  is  to  lose  all  sense  of  proportion  between  crime  and  penalty. 

'  The  Stoics,  to  be  sure,  teach  in  their  paradoxical  way  that  all  faults 
are  sins  and  deserve  the  heaviest  penalty.  But  this  doctrine  is  repug- 
nant to  our  best  feelings  and  opposed  to  all  that  we  know  of  the  gradual 
evolution  of  the  moral  code.  A  real  understanding  of  the  source  of  our 
moral  sense  makes  it  unreasonable  to  punish  the  slightest  error  with 
death,  as  the  Stoic  says  he  would  do,  if  he  were  king.  "  And  how 
now,  my  Stoic  friend?  Wishing  that  you  were  king?  I  thought 
another  of  your  Paradoxes  proved  that  you  are  a  king  already."  "No, 
no,  you  don't  understand.  That  means  a  potential  king,  not  a  king 
de  facto.'1'1  "Potential?  What's  that?"  "Why,  like  Hermogenes, 
who  doesn't  need  to  be  singing  all  the  time  to  prove  that  he's  a  singer. 
Even  when  he  isn't  singing,  he's  a  potential  singer.  In  the  same 
way  I'm  a  king,  potentially."  "Very  well,  I  won't  argue  with  you,  but 
I  don't  think  much  of  Your  Majesty,  hustled  by  street  boys  on  your 
way  to  the  cheap  baths.  I  will  remain  a  private  citizen  and  forgive  as 
I  hope  to  be  forgiven."' 

It  is  not  probable  that,  the  subject  of  this  satire  was  suggested  by 
any  particular  set  of  circumstances.  Roman  society  was  censorious, 
and  Horace  was  himself  an  object  of  criticism,  but  this  is  neither  a 
satire,  in  the  proper  sense,  nor  an  argument  in  self-defence.  It  is  a 
broadly  human  plea  for  generosity  toward  one's  friends.  The  treat- 
ment of  the  Stoics  is  not  to  be  taken  seriously,  and  it  would  not  be  fair 
to  press  too  far  the  obvious  modern  analogies. 

51 


i.  3.  0 


HORATI 


Thackeray's  Roundabout  Paper  called  On  a  Chalk-mark  on  the 
Door  is  an  excellent  companion  piece  to  this  satire  in  its  general  tone 
and  especially  in  the  manner  in  which  the  subject  is  introduced. 

Omnibus  hoc  vitium  est  cantoribus,  inter  amicos 
ut  numquam  inducant  animum  cantare  rogati, 
iniussi  numquam  desistant.     Sardus  habebat 
ille  Tigellius  hoc.     Caesar,  qui  cogere  posset, 
5       si  peteret  per  amicitiam  patris  atque  suam,  non 
quicquam  proficeret ;  si  collibuisset,  ab  ovo 


i-a.  vitium:  not  vice,  but  de- 
fect, fault.  —  rogati  :  contrasted 
with  iniussi,  both  predicate. 

3.  Sardus :  with  contemptuous 
emphasis.     The  Sardinians    were 
in  bad  repute  at  Rome ;   cf.  the 
saying,  Sardi  venales,  alter  altero 
nequior. 

4.  Tigellius  :  a  musician  of  the 
Ciceronian   period,   several    times 
alluded  to  in  Cicero's  letters  and 
in  the  scholiasts.     Cicero  speaks 
of  him  always  as  Sardus  Tigellius, 
but    his   name   was    Hermogenes 
Tigellius,  and   it  is  unlikely  that 
Sardus  was  accepted  by  him  as  a 
cognomen.     He  was  an  acquaint- 
ance of  many   persons  of  promi- 
nence,  Julius   Caesar,   Cleopatra, 
Cicero,  and   the  younger  Caesar, 
but  not,  apparently,  on   terms  of 
equality.      He    had    died   shortly 
before  the  second  satire  was  writ- 
ten.    He  is    to   be  distinguished 
from   another  Hermogenes  Tigel- 
lius, still  alive,  also  a  musician  and 
probably  a  freed  man  or  adopted 
son  of  the  former.     The  tone  of 


Horace  toward  the  elder  Tigellius 
is  not  hostile,  though  not  respect- 
ful ;  toward  the  younger  he  is  dis- 
tinctly hostile  (Sat.  1, 4, 72  ;  I,  10, 
1 8,  80,  go).  There  are  two  places 
where  the  reference  might  be  to 
either  (1,3, 129;  1,9,25).  —  habe- 
bat .  .  .  hoc  :  had  this  way,  habit ; 
hoc  does  not  refer  grammatically 
to  vitium.  —  Caesar :  the  young 
Octavius  took  this  name  immedi- 
ately after  the  death  of  his  great- 
uncle,  in  44.  The  title  Augustus 
was  not  given  to  him  till  27.  He 
is  always  referred  to  by  Horace 
as  Caesar,  never  as  Octavianus, 
which  could  not  be  used  in  hex- 
ameter. —  qui  cogere  posset  :  the 
words  are  not  meant  literally, 
but  as  a  complimentary  recogni- 
tion of  his  position  and  influ- 
ence. 

5.  patris  :    Julius  Caesar,   his 
adoptive   father.  —  si   peteret  :    a 
future    condition,    put    into    past 
time. 

6.  collibuisset  :     an    impf.    in 
force. 


3.  »4 


Usque  ad  mala  citaret  '  To  Bacchc  ! '  moclo  summa 
voce,  modo  hac  resonat  quae  chordis  quattuor  ima. 
Nil  aequale  homini  fuit  illi ;  saepe  velut  qui 
currebat  fugiens  hostem,  persaepe  velut  qui 
lunonis  sacra  ferret;  habebat  saepe  clucentos, 
saepe  decem  servos ;  modo  reges  atque  tetrarchas, 
omnia  magna  loquens,  modo,  '  Sit  mihi  mensa  tripes  et 
concha  salis  puri  et  toga,  quae  defendere  frigus, 


6-7.  ab  ovo  usque  ad  mala  : 
eggs  were  a  usual  part  of  the  pre- 
liminary gustatio  (cf.  Sat,  2,  4, 
12),  and  fruit  was  served  as  a 
dessert  at  the  end  of  the  dinner. 

7-8.  lo  Bacche :  the  opening 
words  or  the  refrain  of  a  drinking 
song.  The  final  e  should  be  short, 
but  may  be  explained  as  having 
been  lengthened  in  the  song  by 
its  position  at  the  end  of  a  musical 
phrase.  —  summa,  ima  :  the  ac- 
companying reference  to  the  lyre 
shows  that  these  words  are  used 
of  the  position  of  the  strings,  not 
of  the  tone.  As  the  lyre  was  held, 
the  bass  string  was  uppermost. 
The  Romans  used  summits  and 
imus  also  of  the  tones  of  the  voice 
in  the  same  sense  as  the  English 
high  and  low. 

9.  aequale :  consistent. 

10.  The   expression    is   some- 
what condensed ;  in  full  it  would 
be  saepe  currebat  velut  qui  fugiens 
hostem  (current),  persaepe  (ince- 
debat  or  some  similar  verb)  velut 
qui  .  .  .  ferret. 

11.  lunonis  sacra:  the  xavr/^o- 
poi,  who  in  religious  processions 


carried  the  offerings  and  sacred 
vessels  in  baskets  on  their  heads 
and  would  naturally  walk  with 
dignity. 

11-12.  ducentos  .  .  .  decem  : 
one  number  suggests  domestic  pro- 
fusion, the  other  a  quiet  dignity; 
neither  is  to  be  interpreted  literally. 
Horace  himself,  in  speaking  of  the 
easy  simplicity  of  his  own  life,  says 
that  lie  was  waited  on  at  supper  by 
three  slaves  (Sat.  I,  6,  116). 

12.  reges  atque  tetrarchas  :  that 
is,  at  one  time  he  talked  of  court 
life  and  Oriental  monarchs,  at  an- 
other time  his  attitude  was  that 
of  a  true  philosopher  who  had 
reduced  his  desires  to  the  bare 
necessities. 

13-14.  tripes,  concha  :  the  Ro- 
man gentleman  regarded  a  hand- 
some dining  table,  supported  upon 
a  central  pedestal,  as  necessary  to 
a  properly  furnished  dining  room, 
and  even  poor  people  had  a  silver 
saltcellar;  cf.  Carm.  2,  16,  13  f., 
Vivitur  parvo  bene  cut  pater- 
num  |  splendet  in  mensa  tenui 
salinum.  —  puri :  salt  was  some- 
times perfumed  or  flavored. 


'.3.  '53 


HORATI 


15      quamvis  crassa,  queat.'     Deciens  centena  dedisses 
huic  parco,  paucis  contento,  quinque  diebus 
nil  erat  in  loculis.     Noctes  vigilabat  ad  ipsum 
mane,  diem  totum  stertebat.     Nil  fuit  umquam 
sic  impar  sibi.  —  Nunc  aliquis  dicat  mihi  :  '  Quid  tu  ? 

20      nullane  habes  vitia?'     Immo  alia  et  fortasse  minora. 
Maenius  absentem  Novium  cum  carperet,  '  Heus  tu,' 
quidam  ait,  '  ignoras  te,  an  ut  ignotum  dare  nobis 
verba  putas  ? '     '  Egomet  mi  ignosco,'  Maenius  inquit. 


15.  Deciens  centena :  sc.  millia 
sestertium,  a  million  sesterces.  — 
dedisses  :      a     paratactic     condi- 
tion,  without  si.     Cf.  Sat.   i,    i, 

45- 

1 6.  parco,      paucis      contento : 
these  words   summarize   the   pro- 
fessions   of   Tigellius    in    13-15. 
The    substance    of    the    passage 
therefore    is:    'But    if    you    had 
taken     this     ascetic     philosopher 
at    his    word    and    given    him    a 
million       or      two,      he      would 
have     turned     spendthrift     in     a 
week.' 

17.  erat :  the  whole  passage  is 
a  description  of  a  man  who  had 
been  dead  some  years,  and  all  the 
tenses  are  past,  impf.,  perf.,  plupf. ; 
in  present  time  it  would  have  been 
dederis  .  .  .  erit :    '  Suppose   you 
gave  him  a  million  ;  a  week  after- 
ward you  look  in  his  pocketbook 
—  nothing  there ! ' 

18.  Nil :  the  neuter  is  colloquial 
and  more  sweeping  than  the  more 
exact  masculine.     Cf.  Catullus,  9, 
II,  quid    me  laetius  est  beatius- 
vef 


19.  impar  sibi :  =  (iri)aequale, 
9.  — Nunc :  at  this  point  in  the  talk. 
—  aliquis,  mihi :  merely  the  two 
conventional  figures  that  Horace 
often  employs  to  enliven  his  Sat- 
ires with  bits  of  dialogue.  —  Quid 
tu  ?  how  about  yourself? 

21-23.  These  verses  repeat  in 
brief,  with  the  added  point  of  a 
double  pun,  the  essence  of  1-20. 
Maenius  corresponds  to  the  critic, 
Novius  to  Tigellius,  heus  tu  to 
quid  tu  f  ignoras  .  .  .  putas  ?  is 
a  slight  expansion  of  nullane  ha- 
bes -vitia  f  and  egotnet  mi  ignosco 
is  a  neater  variation  upon  imtno 
.  .  .  minora.  The  pun  upon  ig- 
notas,  ignotum,  ignosco  gains  force 
from  the  double  question  :  '  Which 
is  it,  Maenius,  igno-ras  or  igno- 
tum f '  *  Neither,'  says  Maenius  ; 
'it's  igno-sco?  The  scholiast 
gives  a  long  account  of  a  Maenius, 
but  it  has  no  point  here,  nor  is  it 
important  to  identify  Novius  with 
one  of  the  persons  mentioned  in 
Sat.  i.  6,  121  ;  the  names  are  only 
more  vivid  substitutes  for  aliquis 
and  mihi,  vs.  19. 


54 


SERMONES 


3»  27 


Stultus  et  improbus  hie  amor  est,  dignusque  notari. 
25          Cum  tua  pervideas  oculis  mala  lippus  inunctis, 
cur  in  amicorum  vitiis  tarn  cernis  acutum 
quam  aut  aquila  aut  serpens  Epidaurius  ?   At  tibi  contra 


24.  hie  amor :  such  satisfaction 
as  (his,  that  is,  as  has  been  ex- 
hibited in  the  preceding  verses. — 
dignusque  notari :  '  a  proper  sub- 
ject for  a  satire.' 

Verses  1-24  introduce  the  sub- 
ject of  the  satire  with  an  easy  skill 
which  Horace  has  nowhere  sur- 
passed. The  passage  reads  like 
the  talk  of  a  group  of  men  sitting 
about  the  fire  at  a  club.  There 
is  no  attempt  to  reproduce  the 
exact  form  of  dialogue,  and  the 
suggestion  of  dialogue  in  the  in- 
troduction is  intended  only  as 
an  interpretation  of  the  spirit  of 
the  passage.  Some  chance  has 
brought  up  the  oddities  of  musi- 
cal people,  of  which  Tigellius 
affords  an  excellent  illustration. 
The  mention  of  his  name  leads 
easily  to  the  amusing  and  not  ill- 
natured  analysis  of  the  character 
of  this  much-flattered  and  ex- 
travagant musical  artist.  But  the 
characterization,  though  not  really 
ill-natured,  illustrates  the  incon- 
sistency of  censuring  others  for 
failings  which  we  excuse  in  our- 
selves, an  inconsistency  which  is 
even  more  clearly  apparent  in 
the  Maenius-Novius  anecdote,  and 
which  furnishes  a  subject  for  the 
satirist. 

25-27.    mala :     stronger    than 


wittis,  in  the  next  line.  —  lippus, 
inunctis  :  there  are  frequent  refer- 
ences to  this  inflammation  of  the 
eyelids  and  to  the  use  of  eye-salve 
(Sat,  I,  5,  30;  Epist.  i,  I,  29); 
both  the  disease  and  the  remedy 
obscured  for  the  time  the  power 
of  vision.  —  aquila,  serpens  :  the 
eagle  is  still  used  in  literature  as  a 
symbol  of  acuteness  of  sight ;  the 
attributing  of  the  same  quality  to 
the  serpent,  common  in  Greek 
literature,  was  due  to  a  supposed 
connection  between  SpaKwv  and 
the  stem  of  SepKo/xai,  to  see. — 
Epidaurius  refers  to  the  story  ot 
the  bringing  of  a  sacred  serpent 
from  the  temple  of  Aesculapius  in 
Epidaurus  to  Rome.  This  is  the 
use,  frequent  in  Horace,  of  the 
definite  and  particular  for  the  gen- 
eral. —  pervideas  :  taken  by  many 
editors  to  mean  examine  sharply, 
making  an  intentional  oxymoron 
with  lippus.  But  pervidere  usu- 
ally means  only  to  look  at,  and  is 
here  contrasted  with  cernis  acu- 
tum, as  mala  is  with  vitiis  and 
lippiis  inunctis  with  aquila  and 
serpens. 

27-28.  contra, rursus:  i.e.  when 
their  turn  comes.  —  illi:  not  re- 
ferring precisely  to  amicorum,  but 
more  general,  —  '  when  the  criti- 
cized turn  critics.' 


55 


3,  28J 


evenit,  inquirant  vitia  ut  tua  rursus  et  illi. 
'Iracundior  est  paulo,  minus  aptus  acutis 

30      naribus  horum  hominum ;  rideri  possit  eo,  quod 
rusticius  tonso  toga  defluit,  et  male  laxus 
in  pede  calceus  haeret.'     At  est  bonus,  ut  melior  vir 
non  alius  quisquam,  at  tibi  amicus,  at  ingenium  ingens 
inculto  latet  hoc  sub  corpore.     Denique  te  ipsum 

35      concute,  num  qua  tibi  vitiorum  inseverit  olim 
natura  aut  etiam  consuetude  mala ;  namque 
neglectis  urenda  filix  innascitur  agris. 


29-30.  A  single  fault  in  two 
forms,  iracundior,  quick-tempered, 
and  minus  aptus  .  .  .,  impatient 
of  criticism,  the  general  followed 
by  the  particular.  —  acutis  nari- 
bus: from  the  instinctive  turning 
up  of  the  nostrils  at  a  disagree- 
able odor.  The  phrase  is  a 
slightly  inaccurate  combination  of 
the  descriptive  (acutis)  with  the 
figurative  (naribus).  —  horum: 
nowadays,  with  a  side-reference 
to  literary  criticism ;  cf.  Sat.  i, 
10,  67-71. 

30-32.  rideri  possit:  'people 
may  laugh  at  him,'  i.e.  he  exposes 
himself  to  possible  ridicule.  — 
tonso :  dat. ;  sc.  ei.  The  two  dis- 
tinct criticisms  are  better  ex- 
pressed in  English  by  two  verbs  : 
*  because  his  hair  is  cut  by  a  coun- 
try barber  and  his  toga  isn't  prop- 
erly creased.1  —  defluit  :  hangs 
loose,  instead  of  being  creased  in 
folds  across  the  chest.  —  male : 
with  both  Iaxi4s  and  haeret ;  is  loose 
and  ill-fitting.  On  these  lines  cf. 


Epist.  i,  i,  94  ff.,  and  Quint.  IT, 
3,  137,  '  et  toga  et  calceus  et  capil- 
lus  tarn  nimia  cura  quam  negle- 
gentia  sunt  reprendenda.' 

34.  inculto  .  .  .  corpore:  is  hid- 
den beneath  this  careless  exterior. 

35.  concute :  from  shaking  the 
loose  folds  of  the  garments  to  see 
whether  anything  was  concealed 
in  them.     Cf.  Plaut.  Aid.  646  i., 
agedum,  excutedutn  pallium  .  .  . 
ne  inter  tunicas  habeas.     The  im- 
plied notion  of  searching  governs 
the  indirect  question,  num  .  .  .  in- 
severit. —  olim :  otice,  i.e.  at  your 
birth,  with    reference   to   natura 
only. 

36-37.  consuetude :  added  as 
an  after-thought,  to  remind  the 
overcritical  censor  that  he  has 
not  only  faults  which  were  in- 
born, but  also  faults  which  are 
due  to  his  own  carelessness.  — 
neglectis :  almost  '  for  if  you  are 
careless.' — filix:  a  common  pest 
to  the  Italian  farmer,  which  he  got 
rid  of  by  burning  over  the  fields- 


SERMONES 


['»  3.  44 


Illuc  praevertamur :  amatorem  quod  amicae 
turpia  decipiunt  caecum  vitia,  ant  etiam  ipsa  haec 
40      delectant,  veluti  Balbinum  polypus  Hagnae: 
vellem  in  amicitia  sic  erraremus,  et  isti 
errori  nomen  virtus  posuisset  honestum. 
At  pater  ut  gnati,  sic  nos  debemus  amici 
si  quod  sit  vitium  non  fastidire ;  strabonem 


38-54.  •  As  the  lover  finds  in 
the  defects  of  his  mistress  only 
added  beauties,  and  as  the  father 
calls  his  boy  by  a  pet  name  which 
minimizes  his  physical  weaknesses, 
so  we  should  try  to  see  the  better 
side  of  our  friends'  qualities.' 

Horace  is  here  strengthening 
his  argument  by  appealing  to  two 
well-recognized  traits.  The  blind- 
ness of  the  lover  was  a  common- 
place of  philosophy  (Plato,  Rep. 
5, 474  d ;  Lucretius,  4,  1 160-1 169 ; 
Ovid,  Ars  Am.  2,  657  ft.)  and  the 
giving  of  nicknames  based  upon 
physical  peculiarities  was  so  com- 
mon among  the  Romans  that 
most  of  their  family  names,  in- 
cluding those  used  in  this  passage 
(JPaetus,  Pullus,  Varus,  Scaurus), 
are  derived  from  this  custom. 

38.  Illuc    praevertamur,    quod : 
let  us  turn  rather  to  this  fact,  that 
.  .  . ;  i.e.  '  let  us  prefer  to  imitate 
the  lover's  blindness.' 

39.  decipiunt :  are  unnoticed  by. 
Cf.  fallere,  latere,  with  ace.  of  the 
person. 

40.  Balbinum:  unknown. — Hag- 
nae :  ("Ayvr;)  a  common  libertina 
name. 


41.  vellem  .  .  .  erraremus:    / 

wish  that  we  made  the  same  mis- 
take;  the  unfulfilled  form  oii/elim 
.  .  .  erremus ;  there  is  no  implied 
condition. 

42.  virtus :    ethics,  ethical  phi- 
losophy.    Cf.    Carm.   2,  2,   17  ff., 
Phraaten  .  .  .  numero  beatorum 
eximit  virtus.  —  honestum :    c r ed- 
itable,   honorable.     Though    such 
blindness  to  obvious  facts  may  be 
an  error,  yet  it  is  so  generous  an 
error  that  philosophers,  especially 
the  Stoics,  should  have  given  it  a 
name  which  would   recognize  its 
nobler  side. 

43-48.  This  passage  cannot  be 
exactly  translated ;  modern  Eng- 
lish, in  which  physical  deformities 
are  ignored  or  relegated  to  the 
scientific  vocabulary  of  surgeons, 
has  no  equivalents  for  paetus, 
pullus,  varus,  scaurus.  Each  of 
these  words  designates  in  an  ex- 
tenuating way  deformities  which 
are  more  broadly  described  by  the 
corresponding  words  strabo,  male 
parvus  and  abortivus,  distortis 
cruribus,  pravis  .  .  .  talis. 

43.  At :  adversative  to  the  main 
thought  of  29  ff.,  not  exclusively 


57 


i.  3.  45] 


HORATI 


45      appellat  paetum  pater,  et  pullum,  male  parvus 
si  cui  filius  est,  ut  abortivus  fuit  olim 
Sisyphus ;  hunc  varum  distortis  cruribus ;  ilium 
balbutit  scaurum  pravis  fultum  male  talis. 
Parcius  hie  vivit:  frugi  dicatur.     Ineptus 

50      et  iactantior  hie  paulo  est :  concinnus  amicis 
postulat  ut  videatur.     At  est  truculentior  atque 
plus  aequo  liber :  simplex  fortisque  habeatur. 
Caldior  est :  acris  inter  numeretur.     Opinor 
haec  res  et  iungit,  iunctos  et  servat  amicos. 


to  what  immediately  precedes. 
The  expression  is  somewhat  con- 
densed, for  ut  pater  gnati  vitium 
nonfastidit,  sic  nos  debemus  amid 
vitium  11011  fastidire. 

47.  Sisyphus :  a  dwarf  kept  by 
Antony. 

48.  balbutit :  properly  lisps,  i.e. 
the  father  speaks  the  word  scaurus 
in  gentle  tones,  in  a  kind  of  baby 
talk,  so  that  it  is  a  pleasant  nick- 
name to  the  child. 

49-54.  These  lines  contain  the 
application  of  the  foregoing  illus- 
trations. Each  of  the  four  quali- 
ties mentioned  may  be  regarded 
as  a  fault,  but  each  has  its  good 
side,  so  that  it  may,  upon  a  gen- 
erous interpretation,  be  considered 
a  virtue.  The  words  which  express 
the  overcritical  interpretation  are 
in  the  comparative  degree,  as  if  to 
suggest  that  the  faults  are  only 
exaggerations  of  good  qualities. 

49.  Parcius  :  too  stingy.  —  frugi : 
economical, '  careful  in  money  mat- 
ters.' 

49-51.    'He  sometimes  thrusts 


himself  forward  too  much  (iactan- 
tior) and  really  makes  an  ass  of 
himself  (ineptus),  but  it  is  in  the 
effort  (postulat)  to  be  entertain- 
ing.1 The  best  commentary  on 
these  qualities  is  in  Cicero,  de 
Orat.  2,  4,  17,  <qui  aut  tempus 
quid  postulet  non  videt  aut  plura 
(too  mucii)  loquitur  aut  se  ostentat 
(  =  iactantior)  .  .  .  aut  denique  in 
aliquo  genere  aut  inconcinnus  aut 
multus  est,  is  ineptus  dicitur.' 
This  sense  of  postulare,  to  expect, 
desire,  almost  =  velle,  is  common 
in  Plautus  and  should  have  fuller 
treatment  in  the  Lexicons. 

51-52.  'Too  much  inclined  to 
be  overbearing,  and  more  free  in 
speech  than  he  ought  to  be.1  On 
its  good  side  this  quality  should 
be  regarded  as  merely  frankness 
and  fearlessness. 

53.  Caldior:  =  calidior ;  ci.sol- 
dum,  Sat.  2,  5,  65  ;  hot-tempered. 
—  acris :  high-spirited. 

54.  haec  res :  i.e.  this  way  of 
treating  the  qualities  of  our  friends, 
this  generous  interpretation. 


i.  3,  64 


SS          At  nos  virtutes  ipsas  invertimus,  atque 

sincerum  cupimus  vas  incrustare.      Probus  quis 
nobiscurn  vivit,  multum  demissus  homo:  illi 
tardo  cognomen,  pingui  damns.     Hie  fugit  omnis 
insidias  nullique  malo  latus  obdit  apertum, 

60      cum  genus  hoc  inter  vitae  versetur,  ubi  acris 
invidia  atque  vigent  ubi  crimina:  pro  bene  sano 
ac  non  incauto,  fictum  astutumque  vocamus. 
Simplicior  quis  et  est,  qualem  me  saepe  libenter 
obtulerim  tibi,  Maecenas,  ut  forte  legentem 


55-56.  '  But  we  follow  a  course 
exactly  the  opposite  of  this ;  in- 
stead of  looking  for  the  virtues 
which  underlie  faults,  we  seek  for 
the  faults  that  accompany  virtues.' 
Of  the  two  figures  by  which  this 
is  expressed,  the  first,  invertinms, 
is  quite  general ;  the  second  is 
derived  from  the  soiling  of  a  clean 
{sincerum)  jar  by  the  incrustation 
deposited  from  sour  wine.  —  cupi- 
mus :  i.e.  we  find  pleasure  in  it. 

56-58.  The  opposed  interpre- 
tations are  expressed  by  pairs  of 
adjectives,  put  together  without  a 
connective.  —  Probus:  honest',  de- 
missus  :  modest,  quiet.  Cicero  uses 
the  two  words  together  (de  Orat. 
2,  43,  182),  contrasting  them  with 
acres, pertinaces.  —  pingui :  some- 
what stronger  than  tardo. 

58-62.  The  virtus  of  these  lines 
is  less  obvious  than  the  preceding, 
and  is  therefore  described  more  at 
length,  before  the  point  is  reached 
in  the  pairs  of  contrasting  adjec- 
tives. — nulli  malo  :  masc.  —  latus  : 
flank,  the  figure  being  from  the 


military  vocabulary.  —  inter:  see 
note  on  i ,  i ,  47. — invidia,  crimina : 
many  allusions  in  the  Satires  show 
that  Horace  was  himself  exposed 
to  envy  and  criticism  by  reason 
of  his  friendship  with  Maecenas. 

—  sano,  non  incauto :   a  man  of 
sense  and  not  without  prudence. 

—  fictum :  insincere ;  cf.  Cic.  Lael. 
8,  26,  where  simulatus  is  used  as 
a  parallel. 

63-66.  The  quality  here  de- 
scribed, perhaps  suggested  by 
contrast  with  the  '  prudence '  of 
58-62,  is  that  single-mindedness 
and  absence  of  self-consciousness 
which  is  at  times  a  most  engaging 
characteristic,  but  at  other  times 
may  become  annoying  thoughtless- 
ness.—  et :  connecting  simplicior 
with  talis,  implied  by  qualem. — 
libenter :  in  my  eagerness ;  it  is 
essentially  the  same  as  simplicior, 
'with  my  thoughts  fixed  too  in- 
tently upon  some  one  idea.1  — 
quovis  sermone :  with  some  unim- 
portant remark,  not  referring  to 
molestus , . .  caret. — Molestus  :  he's 


59 


HORATI 


(>5      aut  taciturn  impellat  quovis  sermone  :  '  Molestus  ; 
communi  sensu  plane  caret,'  inquimus.     Eheu, 
quam  temere  in  nosmet  legem  sancimus  iniquam  ! 
Nam  vitiis  nemo  sine  nascitur;  optimus  ille  est 
qui  minimis  urgetur.     Amicus  dulcis,  ut  aequum  est, 

70      cum  mea  compenset  vitiis  bona ;  pluribus  hisce 
(si  modo  plura  mihi  bona  sunt)  inclinet,  amari 
si  volet ;  hac  lege  in  trutina  ponetur  eadem. 
Qui  ne  tuberibus  propriis  offendat  amicum 
postulat,  ignoscet  verrucis  illius  ;  aequum  est 

75      peccatis  veniam  poscentem  reddere  rursus. 

Denique,  quatenus  excidi  penitus  vitium  irae, 


a  nuisance.  —  communi  sensu :  not 
'  common  sense,'  but  ordinary  tact, 
almost  common  politeness;  cf. 
Seneca,  de  Ben.  i,  12,  3,  sit  in 
beneficio  sensus  communis  \  tem- 
PUS,  locum  observet. 

67.  temere :  hastily,  thought- 
lessly, not  seeing  that  the  law 
condemns  ourselves  also  (in  nos- 
met) and  is  unjust  besides. 

69.  urgetur :  i.e.  has  the  small- 
est load  of  faults  to  carry.     The 
thought    suggests    the    figure   of 
weights    balanced    in    the  scales, 
which  is  more  elaborately  worked 
out    in    the    following    lines ;    so 
inseveritj  35,  suggests  vs.  37. 

70.  cum :      prep,      governing 
•vitiis ;  will  set  my  good  qualities 
over  against  my  faults.     Cf.  Cic. 
de  Fin.  2,  30,  97,  compensabatur 
cum  summis  dolor ibus  laetitia.  — 
hisce:  i.c.  the  bona. 

71.  inclinet:  as  if  he  were  him- 
self the  scales. 


72.    hac  lege:  on  this  condition. 

73-74.  tuberibus :  wens ;  larger 
than  verrucae,  warts.  On  the 
Roman  freedom  of  speech  about 
such  defects,  cf.  44  ff.  and  notes. 
—  postulat :  as  in  vs.  5 1 . 

75.  poscentem:  with  the  subj. 
of  reddere.  —  veniam  :  obj.  of  pos- 
centem^ but  to  be  supplied  also  with 
reddere. 

76  ff.  ;  In  short,  since  we  are 
born  with  faults  (68)  which  no 
philosophy  can  wholly  eradicate, 
it  is  reasonable  that  we  should 
recognize  the  difference  between 
the  lighter  and  the  heavier,  and 
should  not  condemn  all  with  an 
equal  severity.' 

The  figure  of  the  scales  (70- 
72),  in  which  faults  may  be 
weighed  against  virtues,  suggests 
the  weighing  of  one  fault  against 
another,  and  this  recalls  the  Stoic 
doctrine  that  all  faults  are  alike  in 
heinousness.  Against  this  doc- 


60 


SERMONES 


[J.3.84 


cetera  item  nequeunt  stultis  haerentia,  cur  non 
ponderibus  modulisque  suis  ratio  utitur,  ac  res 
ut  quaeque  est,  ita  suppliciis  delicta  coercet  ? 
80      Si  quis  eum  servum,  patinam  qui  tollere  iussus 
semesos  piscis  tepidumque  ligurrierit  ius 
in  cruce  suffigat,  Labeone  insanior  inter 
sanos  dicatur.     Quanto  hoc  furiosius  atque 
mains  peccatum  est :  paulum  deliquit  amicus, 


trine  the  rest  of  the  satire  is  di- 
rected, at  first  with  an  assumed 
humility  and  an  ironical  serious- 
ness, but  finally  with  open  parody 
and  humor. 

76.  vitium:     subj.    of   nequit, 
to  be  supplied  from  the  next  line. 

—  irae :    this   particular  fault,   al- 
ready mentioned   in  vss.  29  and 
53,  is  singled  out  because  Horace 
was  conscious  of  the  failings  of  his 
own  temper. 

77.  item:,    this     supplies    the 
place    of   a    connective    between 
vitium  irae  and  cetera  (vitia).  — 
stultis;   the  technical  Stoic  word 
for    all    men     except     the     ideal 
sapiens ;  its  use  at  this  point  gives 
a  double   meaning   to   ratio  (78) 

—  either  'the  logical  deductions  of 
the  Stoics '  or  '  the  common  sense 
of  mankind'  —  and  prepares  the 
way  for  the  more  open  attack  in 
96  ff. 

79.  ut  .  .  .  ita :  do  not  try  to 
render  literally  ;  l  make  the  penalty 
fit  the  crime.' 

80-81.  tollere:  remove  from  the 
table  at  the  end  of  the  course.  — 
semesos  :  the  fragments  left  on  the 


platter.  —  tepidum :  already  grow- 
ing cold  and  unpalatable.  These 
details  are  added  to  lighten  the 
offense. 

82.  in  cruce :  the  extreme  pen- 
alty.    But  it  is  to  be  remembered 
that  it  had  none  of  the  associations 
now    connected   with    it ;    it   was 
oftener    threatened    than    carried 
out,  and  is  frequently  alluded  to 
in   the   humorous  slang  of  Latin 
comedy.  —  Labeone  :  it  is  not  clear 
whethei  this  was  a  Labeo  who  was 
tribune   in    the   year    131    or   the 
Labeo  who  fought  in  the  army  of 
Brutus,  or  his  son,  a  free-spoken 
opponent    of    Augustus.      It     is 
clear,  however,  that   the   allusion 
is  not  at  all  to  some  act  of  ex- 
treme  cruelty  or  of  serious  mis- 
judgment,    but    to    some    notori- 
ous     extravagance      of     conduct 
which    would    be    recalled    with 
humorous  appreciation  by  readers 
familiar     with     the     gossip      of 
Rome. 

83.  Quanto  .  .  .  furiosius :  not, 
of  course,  to  be  taken  seriously.  — 
hoc  :  subj.  of  est,  referring  to  what 
follows. 


61 


i.  3,  85] 


HORATI 


85      quod  nisi  concedas,  habeare  insuavis,  acerbus : 
odisti,  et  fugis,  ut  Rusonem  debitor  aeris, 
qui  nisi,  cum  tristes  misero  venere  Kalendae, 
mercedem  aut  nummos  undeunde  extricat,  amaras 
porrecto  iugulo  historias  captivus  ut  audit. 

90      Comminxit  lectum  potus,  mensave  catillum 
Evandri  manibus  tritum  deiecit ;  ob  hanc  rem, 
aut  positum  ante  mea  quia  pullum  in  parte  catini 
sustulit  esuriens,  minus  hoc  iucundus  amicus 


85.  quod  nisi  concedas:  i.e.  a 
fault  so  trifling  that  only  a  man  of 
the  most  irritable  temper  would 
take  offense  at  it. 

86-89.  odisti:  the  construction 
is  intentionally  abrupt;  in  full  it 
would  be,  'but  you,  instead  of 
pardoning  the  slight  fault,  turn 
your  friendship  into  dislike  and 
avoidance.'  —  fugis,  ut:  the  natu- 
ral conclusion  would  be  '  as  hard 
as  you  can,'  but  for  this  general 
comparison  Horace  substitutes  a 
special  allusion  which  has  a  point 
of  its  own.  Ruso,  unknown  ex- 
cept from  this  reference,  is  a 
money-lender,  keen  in  collecting 
his  interest,  but  with  a  weakness 
for  writing  histories.  His  clever 
debtor,  unable  to  meet  his  notes, 
pretends  an  interest  in  Ruso's 
writings  and  so  gets  easy  terms 
from  the  flattered  author.  But 
the  histories  are  so  dull  that  to 
listen  to  them  is  as  painful  as  to 
stand  with  outstretched  neck  await- 
ing the  blow  of  the  executioner, 
and  Ruso's  debtors  therefore  avoid 
him  even  more  persistently  than 


other  debtors  avoid  their  credit- 
ors. —  Kalendae  :  the  first  of  the 
month  was  one  of  the  dates  for 
collecting  money.  Cf.  Epod.  2, 
69  f.  —  mercedem :  the  interest ; 
nummos  :  the  principal.  —  unde- 
unde :  the  duplication  makes  it 
indefinite ;  cf.  quisquis,  utut,  etc. 
—  captivus  ut :  like  a  prisoner  of 
war,  about  to  be  executed. 

91.  Evandri:    a    king    in    the 
mythical  time  before  the  coming 
of  Aeneas  to    Latium.  —  manibus 
tritum :  the  owner  would  point  to 
the  handle  and  remark  that  it  had 
been  worn  smooth  by  the  hands 
of  the  good  king.     The  craze  for 
collecting  old  pottery  and  bronzes 
and  claiming  for  them  a  fabulous 
antiquity  is  ridiculed  again  in  Sat. 
2,  3.  20  ff. 

92.  positum  ante :  =  anteposi- 
tiim,  served.  —  mea  in  parte  :  the 
food  was  served  in  a  platter  placed 
in  the  middle   of  the   table   and 
each  guest  helped  himself,  taking 
naturally  that  portion  which  was 
nearest  to  him. 

93.  esuriens:  his  hunger  being 


62 


SERMONES 


3,  99 


sit  mihi  ?     Quid  faciam  si  furtum  fecerit,  aut  si 
95      prodiderit  commissa  fide  sponsumve  negarit  ? 

Quis  paria  esse  fere  placuit  peccata,  laborant 
cum  ventum  ad  verum  est ;  sensus  moresque  repugnant 
atque  ipsa  utilitas,  iusti  prope  mater  et  aequi. 
Cum  prorepserunt  primis  animalia  terris, 


a  partial  excuse  for  the  breach  of 
etiquette.  —  minus  .  .  .  mihi :  the 
same  as  odisli  et  fugis,  86. 

94.  furtum  fecerit:   as  in  the 
Twelve    Tables,  furtum  factum 
sit. 

95.  fide :  the  old  dative  form. 
—  sponsum :  a  promise   made  by 
the    formal    sponsio.      As    many 
business  transactions  were  ratified 
only   by    oral    formulas,    without 
written   evidence,    the    failure    to 
keep    a   verbal    promise    in   such 
matters  was  regarded  as  an  espe- 
cially serious  crime. 

96  ff.  The  Paradoxes  of  the 
Stoics  were  doctrines  which, 
though  they  transcended  ordi- 
nary experience,  were  held  to 
express  essential  truths.  There 
is  a  brief  review  of  them  in 
Cicero,  pro  Mur.  29,  60  ff.,  where 
the  particular  Paradox  here  dis- 
cussed is  stated  thus  :  '  omnia 
peccata  esse  paria ;  omne  delic- 
tum  scelus  esse  nefarium,  nee 
minus  delinquere  eum  qui  gallum 
gallinaceum,  cum  opus  non  fuerit, 
quam  eum  qui  patrem  suffocaverit.' 
Against  this  Horace  sets  the  re- 
sults of  actual  observation,  en- 
forced by  a  condensed  history, 


from  Epicurean  philosophy,  of  the 
development  of  the  ideas  of  right 
and  wrong.  The  Stoic  teaching 
is  not  unlike  the  Calvinistic  doc- 
trine of  sin  —  that  the  sinfulness 
of  an  act  lies  in  the  violation  of 
the  law  of  God,  the  particular 
details  or  consequences  being  im- 
material —  while  the  attitude  of 
Horace  is  that  of  the  believers  in 
evolutionary  ethics. 

96.  Quis:    the    old    dat.    form 
for  quibus.  —  fere :  with  paria.  — 
placuit :  technical ;  a/aca/cei ;  transl. 
those  who  hold. 

97.  ad  verum:  ;to  the  test  of 
actual  experience.' — sensus  mores- 
que :  so  Cicero,  de  Fin.  4,  19,  55, 
arguing  against  this  doctrine,  says 
that   sensus   cuiusque    et    natura 
rerum  atque  ipsa  veritas  cry  out 
against  it. 

98.  utilitas:      in    the    broader 
sense,   '  the   common    good,'   not 
individual  advantage.     The  utili- 
tarian philosophy  has  a  prominent 
place  in  modern  thought.  — prope  : 
qualifies    the     figurative     mater ; 
'which  may  almost  be  called  the 
mother  of  the  sense  of  justice.' 

99.  The  following  account  of 
the    evolution    of  society  is    Epi- 


I,  3-  I0°] 


HORATI 


100    mutum  et  turpe  pecus,  glandem  atque  cubilia  propter 
unguibus  et  pugnis,  dein  fustibus,  atque  ita  porro 
pugnabant  armis,  quae  post  fabricaverat  usus, 
donee  verba,  quibus  voces  sensusque  notarent, 
nominaque  invenere  ;  dehinc  absistere  bello, 

105    oppida  coeperunt  munire  et  ponere  leges, 
ne  quis  fur  esset,  neu  latro,  neu  quis  adulter. 
Nam  fuit  ante  Helenam  cunnus  taeterrima  belli 
causa  ;  sed  ignotis  perierunt  mortibus  illi, 
quos  venerem  incertam  rapientis  more  ferarum 

1 10    viribus  editior  caedebat,  ut  in  grege  taurus. 
lura  inventa  metu  iniusti  fateare  necesse  est, 
tempora  si  fastosque  velis  evolvere  mundi. 


curean ;  compare  Lucretius,  5, 
780-1457.  —  prorepserunt :  from 
the  earth  which  gave  them  birth. 
—  animalia  :  living  creatures,  but 
not  yet  men. 

100.  mutum:  lacking  the  power 
of  articulate  speech.  — turpe  :  still 
shapeless,  not  of  human  form. — 
glandem  atque  cubilia :  food  and 
shelter  no  better  than  that  of 
animals. 

101-102.  unguibus  et  pugnis, 
fustibus,  armis :  various  steps  in 
a  civilization  to  which  we  are 
still  engaged  in  making  contribu- 
tions. 

103-104.  verba  :  p^/xara,  verbs : 
nomina :  ovofjuara,  nouns;  techni- 
cal terms  of  grammar,  somewhat 
less  precise  than  the  correspond- 
ing English  words,  together  stand- 
ing for  the  whole  of  speech.  — 
voces  sensusque  notarent :  '  might 


give  meaning  to  their  cries  (voces) 
and  express  their  feelings.1 

106.  adulter :  it  is  a  touch  of 
sensationalism  that  leads  Horace 
to   select   this    particular  sin   for 
detailed    illustration   in    the   next 
four  verses. 

107.  ante  Helenam :  cf.  Carm. 
4,  9,  25,  irixere  fortes  ante  Aga- 
mewnona.     Recorded    history    is 
thought  of  as  beginning  with  the 
Trojan  war. 

108.  sed  ignotis :   emphatic  by 
position  at  the  beginning  and  in 
caesura ;    '  but  we   know    nothing 
of  all  that  went  before.' 

109.  incertam :       promiscuous, 
before  the  recognition  of  the  in- 
stitution of  marriage. 

1 10.  viribus  editior :  a  stronger; 
a  very  rare  figurative  use  of  editus. 

III-H2.    A  restatement  of  the 
point  to  bt  proved  (jura  inventa 


64 


SERMONES 


Nec  natura  potest  iusto  secernere  iniquum, 
dividit  ut  bona  diversis,  f  ugienda  petendis ; 

115    nee  vincet  ratio  hoc,  tantundem  ut  peccet  idemque 
qui  teneros  caules  alien!  fregerit  horti, 
et  qui  nocturnus  sacra  divom  legerit.     Adsit 
regula,  peccatis  quae  poenas  irroget  aequas, 
ne  scutica  dignum  horribili  sectere  flagello. 

120    Nam,  ut  ferula  caedas  meritum  maiora  subire 
verbera,  non  vereor,  cum  dicas  esse  pares  res 


metu  iniusti  —  utilitasiusti mater), 
which  is  now  regarded  as  demon- 
strated to  one  who  will  read  the 
history  of  the  race  (si  fastos  velis 
evolvere). 

113-114.  A  conclusion  from 
the  preceding  argument,  which  in 
a  logical  form  would  be  introduced 
by  ergo:  'there  is  therefore  no 
natural  instinct  which  distin- 
guishes between  right  and  wrong.' 
—  bona :  not  in  the  moral  sense, 
for  that  would  contradict  the  whole 
argument,  but  agreeable,  pleasant, 
further  defined  by  petendis,  as 
diversis  (their  opposites)  is  by 
fugienda. 

115-117.  A  further  conclusion  : 
'  Therefore  —  since  the  distinc- 
tion between  right  and  wrong  is 
neither  innate  nor  absolute — there 
is  no  such  thing  as  sin  per  se,  but 
each  error  or  fault  must  be  judged 
separately,  according  to  its  effect 
upon  the  common  advantage.'  — 
nee  vincet  ratio :  nor  will  philoso- 
phy (i.e.  the  Stoics)  succeed  in 
Proving.  —  tantundem  :  quantita- 
tive ;  idem :  qualitative ;  in  the 

HOR.  SAT.  —  5  65 


same  degree  and  kind  (Green- 
ough).  The  two  kinds  of  theft 
here  named  are  said  to  have  been 
specifically  mentioned  in  the  laws 
of  Draco  as  deserving  the  same 
punishment.  —  sacra  legerit :  an 
old  legal  formula,  preserved  in 
the  compound  sacrilegus. 

1 18.  regula  :  a  scale.  —  aequas  : 
just,   fair,  proportioned    to   the 
offense. 

119.  scutica:    the  whip. — fla- 
gello :  the  scourge,  a  knout  or  cat- 
of-nine-tails,  a  much  more  dreadful 
instrument  of  punishment  than  the 
scutica. 

120-124.  Nam :  '  we  need  a 
scale  of  sins  which  shall  prevent 
you  from  inflicting  too  severe  a 
penalty ;  for  that  you,  a  Stoic, 
with  your  overstrict  laws,  should 
inflict  too  light  a  penalty  is  highly 
improbable.'  —  ferula:  a  cane, 
such  as  was  used  by  schoolmas- 
ters ;  substituted  for  scutica  for 
variety.  —  ut  caedas  .  .  .  ,  non 
vereor :  the  regular  construction 
would  be  ne  caedas  • .  .  .  ,  non  ve- 
reor, but  the  underlying  thought 


HORATI 


furta  latrociniis,  et  magnis  parva  mineris 
falce  recisurum  simili  te,  si  tibi  regnum 
permittant  homines.     Si  dives  qui  sapiens  est, 
125    et  sutor  bonus  et  solus  formosus  et  est  rex, 

cur  optas  quod  habes  ?     '  Non  nosti  quid  pater,'  inquit, 
'  Chrysippus  dicat :  sapiens  crepidas  sibi  numquam 
nee  soleas  fecit,  sutor  tamen  est  sapiens.'     Qui  ? 


here  does  not  call  for  a  verb  of 
fearing.  Expressed  without  irony 
the  verb  would  be  non  verisimile 
est  or  something  like  that,  and  the 
«/-clause  conforms  to  the  under- 
lying thought  and  all  the  more 
easily  because  the  ///"-clause  comes 
first.  But  Horace  has  substituted 
for  the  simple  expression  the  iron- 
ical vereor,  which  in  this  connec- 
tion ceases  to  be  really  a  verb  of 
fearing.  —  pares  res  :  =  paria,  96. 
—  magnis :  after  simili ;  a  con- 
densed construction  for  falce 
simili  qua  falce  magna.  —  reci- 
surum: as  a  farmer  prunes  the 
vines.  —  si  tibi  regnum  .  .  .  :  with 
dicas,  121,  begins  a  quotation  in 
indirect  form  of  the  purpose  of  the 
Stoic  philosopher:  'I  would  do 
thus  and  so,  if  I  had  the  power.' 
But  the  last  thought  is  care- 
lessly expressed  in  the  common 
phrase,  '  if  I  were  king,1  and 
Horace  seizes  upon  this  phrase 
to  turn  the  rest  of  the  satire  into 
a  humorous  flouting  of  Stoic 
doctrine 

124-126.  This  Paradox  is  thus 
stated  by  Cicero,  pro  Mur.  29, 
6 1  :  '  solos  sapientes  esse,  si  dis- 


tort issi  mi,  formosos,  si  mendicis- 
simi,  divites,si  servitutem  serviant, 
reges ;  and  is  referred  to  by  Lucil- 
ius,  1225  f.  (Marx).  The  funda- 
mental truth  which  underlies  the 
Paradox  is  that  character  makes 
the  man,  that  character  is  the 
essential  and  circumstances  are 
the  accidents,  a  truth  which 
Horace  in  other  places  (e.g. 
Carm.  2,  2,  17  ff.)  fully  recog- 
nizes ;  here  it  suits  his  purpose 
to  ridicule  the  exaggerated  form 
in  which  the  doctrine  was  ex- 
pressed. 

127.  Chrysippus:  next  to  Zeno 
the  chief  of    Stoic  philosophers, 
called     pater     as     a     term     of 
honor. 

128.  sutor:  this  particular  illus- 
tration, which  tends  to  make  the 
whole  doctrine  ridiculous,  was  se- 
lected partly  with  reference  to  the 
story   of  Alfenus,    130,   partly   to 
illustrate   the  dogged   persistence 
with   which   the   Stoics   defended 
their   Paradox,  even   in   its   most 
extreme   applications.  —  Qui  ?    an 
exclamation     of    bewilderment  •. 
'  how     is    that  ?       I     don't    see 
it.1 


66 


SERMON ES 


i»  3.  136 


'Vt,   quamvis  tacet   Hermogenes,   cantor    tamen   at- 
que 

130    optimus  est  modulator  ;  ut  Alfenus  vafer,  omni 
abiecto  instrument©  artis  clausaque  taberna, 
sutor  erat;  sapiens  operis  sic  optimus  omnis 
est  opifex  solus,  sic  rex.'     Vellunt  tibi  barbam 
lascivi  pueri ;  quos  tu  nisi  fuste  coerces, 

135    urgeris  turba  circum  te  stante  miserque 

rumperis  et  latras,  magnorum  maxime  regum ! 


129-133-  'The  ideal  man,  the 
sapiens,  is  potentially  master  of 
all  arts  and  crafts,  though  he  may 
not  actually  practice  them,  just  as 
Hermogenes  is  a  singer  even  when 
he  is  not  singing.'  —  Hermogenes: 
see  on  vs.  4.  —  modulator  :  a  more 
technical  word  than  cantor.  —  Al- 
fenus :  apparently,  as  the  scholiast 
says,  the  famous  jurist  (wafer  is 
used  of  the  law  in  Sat.  2,  2,  131) 
Alfenus  Varus,  consul  in  39.  He 
is  said  to  have  been  in  early  life  a 
cobbler  at  Cremona,  and  the  argu- 
ment of  the  Stoic  is  that  he  re- 
mained potentially  a  cobbler  even 
after  he  became  a  great  man. — 
instrumento  :  collectively  ;  '  the 
tools  of  his  trade.'  —  sic  :  '  in  this 
sense,"1  as  Alfenus  was  potentially  a 
shoemaker ;  not  =  ergo,  therefore. 
—  solus  :  the  Stoic's  argument, 
even  if  it  be  accepted  at  its  best, 
does  not  prove  that  only  the  sapi- 
ens is  an  ideal  craftsman  ;  in  fact, 
it  proves  just  the  contrary.  But 
solus  was  used  in  the  Paradox, 
and  i,s  therefore  added  by  the 
Stoic  in  a  triumphant  tone,  as  if 


he    had    now    proved  his   whole 
point. 

133  ff.  As  often,  Horace  makes 
no  direct  answer  to  the  argument, 
but  turns  to  other  matters  which 
form  in  the  end  a  most  conclu- 
sive, though  indirect,  reply.  '  Very 
well,  you  seem  to  have  proved 
that  you  are  a  king,  but  appear- 
ances are  against  you,  and  cer- 
tainly you  are  a  very  odd  kind 
of  king.'  —  barbam,  fuste :  phi- 
losophers of  the  stricter  sect 
sometimes  chose  to  distinguish 
themselves  from  other  men  by 
wearing  a  long  beard  (cf.  Sat.  2, 
3>  35)  iussit  sapient  em  pascere 
barbam)  and  by  carrying  an  old- 
fashioned  staff.  —  rumperis  et  la- 
tras :  i.e.  '  make  yourself  hoarse 
with  howling.'  —  This  exaggerated 
use  of  rumpere  was  colloquial ;  cf. 
Epist.  i,  19,  15  and  Plaut.  Capt. 
14.  latras  suggests  the  Cynic 
school  (from  KVWV,  dog),  with 
which  the  Stoics  were  connected. 
—  magnorum  maxime  regum  :  as 
if  it  were  a  formal  title  of  respect, 
'  Your  Most  Gracious  Majesty-' 


67 


i.  3.  «37] 


HORATI 


140 


Ne  longum  faciam,  dum  tu  quadrante  lavatum 
rex  ibis,  neque  te  quisquam  stipator  ineptum 
praeter  Crispinum  sectabitur,  et  mihi  dulces 
ignoscent,  si  quid  peccaro  stultus,  amici, 
inque  vicem  illorum  patiar  delicta  libenter, 
privatusque  magis  vivam  te  rege  beatus. 


137.  Ne  longum  faciam :  cf.  ne 
te  merer,  Sat.  i,  i,  14.  and  the 
more  abrupt  iam  satis,  I,  i,  120. 
—  quadrante  :  one  fourth  of  an  as, 
the  price  of  admission  to  the  pub- 
lic baths. 

138-139.  stipator  :  as  an 
escort.  —  ineptum  :  with  Cris- 
pinum, who  is  called  lippus 
and  otherwise  derided  in  I,  I, 


1 20  f. — et:  correlated  with  -gue, 
141. 

140.  stultus :  in  the  Stoic  use 
of  the  word.  —  With  these  verses 
Horace  returns  to  the  serious 
thought  of  the  earlier  part  of  the 
satire,  which  is  in  fact  latent  in 
his  mind  even  while  he  is  ridi- 
culing the  Stoic  solemnity  and 
Pharisaism. 


There  is  no  reference  in  this  satire  which  fixes  tlie  date  precisely,  and 
we  are  obliged  to  fall  back  upon  general  indications.  The  criticisms  to 
which  it  is  a  reply  were  called  forth  by  the  sensational  and  personal 
tone  of  the  early  seventh  and  eighth  satires,  and  especially  of  the 
second;  in  particular,  vss.  91  ff.  show  that  this  was  written  after  the 
second  and,  probably,  very  soon  after  it.  Maecenas  is  not  mentioned 
in  this  satire,  as  he  is  not  referred  to  in  the  other  earlier  ones,  though  a 
personal  mention  would  have  been  natural  in  8,  8  and  14.  Nor  is  there 
any  reference  to  the  group  of  distinguished  friends  whose  approval  is 
in  the  tenth  satire  the  final  answer  to  the  critics.  This  satire  may 
therefore  with  probability  be  placed  with  2,  7  and  8  of  this  book  and 
with  some  of  the  Epodes,  all  written  before  Horace's  introduction  to 
Maecenas  in  38. 

The  reference  to  Tigellius  (vs.  72)  is  too  vague  to  give  any  indica- 
tion of  the  date  (cf.  note  on  i,  3,  4). 

'  The  great  Athenian  writers  of  comedy  were  the  founders  of  satire. 
After  them  came  Lucilius,  not  less  keen  than  they,  but  too  careless  and 
too  profuse.  His  faults  1  desire  to  avoid,  for  mere  quantity  is  not  a 
merit ;  but  the  spirit  of  his  satire  I  shall  attempt  to  preserve.  I  am 

68 


SERMONES  [i,  4,  3 

aware,  however,  that  exposure  of  the  weaknesses  of  men  makes  my 
writings  unpopular,  and  I  desire  to  say  a  word  in  self-defence. 

'  In  the  first  place,  I  do  not  think  that  satire  is  poetry  or  should  be 
judged  by  the  standards  of  poetry.  It  lacks  the  imaginative  inspiration 
and  the  lofty  expression  of  poetry,  and  is,  in  this  respect,  like  comedy, 
a  mere  reproduction  in  verse-form  of  ordinary  talk  on  everyday  subjects. 

'The  main  question,  however,  is  whether  the  satirist  deserves  to  be 
regarded  with  dislike  and  suspicion.  You  compare  him  to  a  detective, 
not  noticing  that  you  thereby  compare  yourself  to  a  criminal,  but  the 
comparison  fails  because  my  notes  are  not  taken  for  use  in  a  court  or 
for  publication.  You  say  that  the  satirist  is  a  man  of  meanly  critical 
spirit,  who  finds  pleasure  in  exhibiting  the  failings  of  others.  But  this 
also  is  untrue ;  my  satire  is  no  more  personal  or  serious  than  the  rail- 
lery of  a  good  talker  at  a  dinner  table.  It  is  in  fact  only  the  exercise 
of  a  habit  of  observation  taught  me  by  my  good  father,  who  without 
knowing  the  philosophy  of  books  instructed  me  in  a  practical  philoso- 
phy founded  on  observation.  The  only  fault  you  can  find  with  me  is 
that  I  write  down  my  observations.  But  everybody  nowadays  writes ; 
if  you  object  to  that,  we'll  unite  to  condemn  you  and  the  penalty  shall 
be  that  you  shall  turn  writer  yourself.' 

The  connection  of  thought  is  less  clearly  indicated  in  this  satire  than 
in  the  first  or  third ;  there  is  occasional  sharpness  of  retort  and  there 
is  little  of  the  mellow  humor  of  the  later  work.  These  are  the  marks 
of  immaturity.  The  sensitiveness  to  criticism,  also,  is  of  the  kind  that 
decreases  with  experience. 

Eupolis  atque  Cratinus  Aristophanesque  poetae, 
atque  alii,  quorum  comoedia  prisca  virorum  est, 
si  quis  erat  dignus  describi,  quod  malus  ac  fur, 

1-2.   The  three  most  important  ative  clause  and  the  genitive ;  cf. 

writers  of  the  Old  Comedy  (prisca  the  corresponding  verse,  Sat.  1, 10, 

comoedia),   of  whose  works  only  16. 

the  eleven  plays  of  Aristophanes  3.    dignus  describi :  deserved  to 

(444-388  B.C.)   are  extant.     The  be  satirized;    cf.   vs.    25.   culpari 

names  make  a  sonorous  opening  dignos,  and  Sat.   i,  3,  24,  dignus 

of  the  speech  for  the  defendant.  —  ...  notari.     These  are  all  various 

poetae  :  to  close  the  verse  with  em-  ways  of  saying.  '  a  suitable  sub- 

phasis  ;   4  true  poets,  all  of  them.'  ject   for   satire.'  —  malus   ac   fur : 

—  virorum:  attracted  into  the  rel-  the  same  as  malos  fures,  Sat.  I, 

69 


».  4.4] 


HORATI 


quod  moechus  foret  aut  sicarius  aut  alioqui 
5        famosus,  multa  cum  libertate  notabant. 

Hinc  omnis  pendet  Lucilius,  hosce  secutus 
mutatis  tantum  pedibus  numerisque,  facetus, 
emunctae  naris,  durus  componere  versus. 
Nam  fuit  hoc  vitiosus  :  in  hora  saepe  ducentos, 
10      ut  magnum,  versus  dictabat  stans  pede  in  uno  ; 


I,  77,  with  no  more  difference 
than  there  is  between  '  rascals  and 
thieves'  and  'rascally  thieves.' 

5.  famosus  :  in  a  bad  sense,  the 
common  meaning  in  early  Latin. 
—  libertate  :  with  the  utmost  free- 
dom of  speech.     The  extant  plays 
of  Aristophanes,  in  which  public 
men  are  ridiculed  with   great  li- 
cense,   abundantly    support    this 
statement. 

6.  Hinc  .  .  .  pendet:  upon  them 
Lucilius  is  entirely  dependent,  i.e. 
as  the  context  shows,  they  were 
his    predecessors   and    models   in 
the   open  ridicule  of  individuals, 
his   warrant   for  the  use  of  per- 
sonal  satire.     It   does   not   mean 
that    Roman  satire,  as  a  form  of 
literature,  was  derived  from  or  an 
imitation  of  Greek  comedy.  —  C. 
Lucilius:     see     Introd. —  hosce: 
=  hos.      In    Plautus    the     forms 
in    -ce    are     used     only     before 
vowels. 

7.  mutatis  .  .  .  numeris :    Lu- 
cilius wrote  partly  in  iambics  and 
trochaics,  but  the  verse  which  he 
used  most  frequently  and  which 
became   the  traditional  verse  for 
satire  was  the  dactylic  hexameter, 
which    is    not   employed    in    the 


drama.  —  tantum :  not  to  be  taken 
too  strictly,  for  Lucilius  of  course 
did  not  use  the  dramatic  form. 
The  emphasis  here  is  upon  the 
satirical  spirit. — facetus:  origi- 
nally 'brilliant  or  polished  in 
speech '  (from  fa-ri,  to  speaK) , 
and  this  is  the  meaning  always 
in  Plautus;  cf.  also  Sat.  i,  10, 
44,  molle  atque  facetum,  of  Ver- 
gil's bucolic  poetry.  The  mean- 
ing '  humorous,'  '  facetious,'  comes 
over  into  the  adj.  from  the  noun 
facetiae.  It  combines  with  emunc- 
tae naris  to  express  the  single  idea 
'keen  in  words  and  in  thought,' 
'sarcastic.'  The  same  idea  is  ex- 
pressed in  Sat.  i,  10,  3  f.,  sale 
multo  urbem  defriciiit. 

9.  hoc :    in    this,    referring    to 
what    follows,    which    is    at    the 
same  time  an  expansion  of  durus 
componere  versus. 

10.  ut  magnum :  '  considering  it 
a  great  feat.'  —  stans  .  .  .  uno : 
apparently  a  proverbial  expression 
for  doing  something  without  effort, 
but  it  does  not  occur  elsewhere ; 
Quintilian,  12,  9,  18,  in  his  actioni- 
bus  omni,  ut  agricolae  dicunt,  pede 
standum  est,  seems  to  be  a  refer- 
ence to  the  opposite  idea. 


70 


SERMONES 


[i,  4,.i6 


cum  flueret  kitulentus,  erat  quod  tollere  velles ; 
garrulus  atque  piger  scribendi  ferre  laborem, 
sscribendi  recte ;  nam  ut  multum,  nil  moror.  —  Ecce, 
^          Crispinus  minimo  me  provocat :  '  Accipe,  si  vis, 
•^t«/t1accipiam  tabulas  ;  detur  nobis  locus,  hora, 

'custodes  ;  videamus  uter  plus  scribere  possit.' 


1 1 .  tollere :  take  out,  before  us- 
ing  the  water  for  drinking.  The 
figure  is  that  of  a  muddy  stream ; 
cf.  the  repetition  in.  Sat.  I,  10,  50  f., 
at  dixi  fluere  hunc  lutulentum, 
saepe  ferentem  plura  quidem  tol- 
lenda  relinquendis,  and  the  com- 
ment in  Quintilian,  10,  i,  94,  'ego 
ab  Horatio  dissentio,  qui  Lucilium 
fluere  lutulentum  et  esse  aliquid 
quod  tollere  possis  putat.'  The 
scholiast  thinks  that  quod  tollere 
•velles  =  quod  sumere  optares,  but 
this  is  quite  wrong. 

12-13.  garrulus:  this  must  go 
back  in  agreement  to  9-10,  in  spite 
of  the  verse  between.  It  is  a  loose 
construction,  but  the  whole  passage 
is  loosely  hung  together;  secutus 
without  est,facetus,  durus,  vtiiosus 
with  its  own  verb,  garrulus,  form 
a  series  of  half-connected  appen- 
dages to  the  noun,  Lucilius.  — 
scribendi  recte  :  a  corrective ;  '  of 
writing  properly,  I  mean.1  —  ut 
multum :  sc.  scripserit.  —  nil  moror : 
a  common  colloquialism,  which 
usually  means  '  I  don't  care,'  '  I 
don't  bother  about  it.'  The  con- 
struction is  properly  ace.  and  infin., 
and  the  only  way  of  explaining  the 
»/-clause  is  to  say  that  nil  moror 
has  here  the  meaning  and  con- 


struction of  concedo;  'for  that  he 
wrote  much,  I  grant  with  indiffer- 
ence.'—  Ecce:  the  mere  mention 
of  writing  much  brings  forward 
Crispinus  at  once  with  a  boast. 

14.  minimo :  this  must  mean 
offers  me  heavy  odds,  i.e.  will  ac- 
cept a  bet  in  which  Horace  puts 
up  the  smallest  possible  pledge. 
There  is  no  precise  parallel  to  this 
use  of  minimo,  but  cf.  Sueton. 
lul.  50,  amplissima  praedia  .  .  . 
minimo  addixit ;  Catull.  44,  4, 
quovis  Sabinum  pignore  esse  con- 
tendunt ;  Verg.  Eel.  3,  31,  tu  die, 
mecum  quo  pignore  certes.  The 
scholiasts  appear  to  know  the 
expression :  '  minimo  provocare 
dicuntur  hi  qui  in  sponsione  plus 
ipsi  promittunt  quam  exigant  ab 
adversario,'  but  the  explanation 
that  it  is  minimo  digito,  with  a 
gesture,  is  a  mere  guess.  —  Accipe  : 
sc.  tabulas.  —  si  vis :  less  formal 
than  'if  you  please';  often  used 
in  colloquial  language  of  comedy 
in  the  shortened  form  sis  to  lessen 
the  abruptness  of  the  bare  impv. 
Cf.  sodes,  Sat.  I,  9,  41  n.,  and  the 
enclitic  -dum. 

15  f.  detur  custodes :  arrange- 
ments for  a  formal  contest,  with 
supervisors. 


1,4.17] 


HORATI 


Di  bene  fecerunt,  inopis  me  quodque  pusilli 

finxerunt  animi,  raro  et  perpauca  loquentis  ; 

at  tu  conclusas  hircinis  follibus  auras, 

usque  laborantis  dum  ferrum  molliat  ignis, 

ut  mavis,  imitare.     Beatus  Fannius,  ultro 

delatis  capsis  et  imagine,  cum  mea  nemo 

scripta  legat,  volgo  recitare  timentis  ob  hanc  rem, 

quod  sunt  quos  genus  hoc  minime  iuvat,  utpote  pluris 


17.  Di  bene  fecerunt :  not  merely 
a  statement,  but  a  colloquial  ex- 
pression of  gratitude ;  Thank 
Heaven.  Cf.  bene  facts,  yotfre 
very  kind]  Plaut.  Amph.  937,  tarn 
nunc  irata  non  esf  \\  non  sum.  \\ 
bene  facts.  —  quodque :  quod  intro- 
duces the  whole  clause,  after  the 
verb  of  emotion ;  -que  connects 
inopis  and  pusilli,  but  is  attached 
to  a  word  between  them;  so  115, 
below,  vitatu  quidque  petitu;  Sat. 
I,  6,  44,  cornua  .  .  .  -vincatque 
tubas,  and  often  in  Horace. 

18.  loquentis:  agreeing  gram- 
matically with  animi,  but  in  sense 
with  me.  The  transfer  of  epithets 
is  common  in  the  Odes  (e.g.  i,  4, 
6  f.,  aspera  nigris  aequora  vent  is), 
and  the  attraction  of  loquentis  from 
me  to  animi  is  made  easier  by  the 
frequent  use  of  animus  for  the 
whole  man  (i,  2,  69,  dicer  et  haec 
animus) . 

19  ff.  'Go  and  be  a  pair  of 
bellows,  a  mere  wind-bag,  as  is 
evidently  your  preference.1  —  ut 
mavis :  as  you  in  fact  prefer,  not 
'since  you  so  choose.1 

2i  ff.     Fannius :  mentioned  also 


in  i,  10,  80,  with  the  adj.  ineptus, 
as  a  follower  of  Hermogenes 
Tigellius,  but  otherwise  unknown. 
There  are  five  scholia  attempting 
to  explain  the  reference  and  the 
words  ultra  .  .  .  imagine,  but 
they  are  confused  and  only  par- 
tially intelligible.  The  clause  cum 
.  .  .  legat  contrasts  the  good  for- 
tune of  Fannius  with  the  unpopu- 
larity of  Horace ;  beat  us  must 
therefore  mean  '  happy  in  his  popu- 
lar! ty1  and  ultro  .  .  .  imagine  must 
contain  a  satirical  reason  for  call- 
ing Fannius  popular.  The  sense 
would  then  be  '  The  truly  fortunate 
poet  is  neither  Crispinus  with  his 
facile  versification  nor  I  with  my 
satire,  but  Fannius ;  he  must  be 
popular,  for  he  has  of  his  own  ac- 
cord set  up  (in  a  public  place, 
at  the  bookseller's?)  his  bookcases 
and  portrait-bust,  while,  as  to  my 
writings,  no  one  reads  them.1  But 
in  addition  to  the  obscurity  of  the 
allusions,  the  whole  sentence  is 
too  condensed  for  clearness. 

23  f .  timentis  :  agreeing  with  the 
gen.  implied  in  mea.  —  genus  hoc  ; 
satire  —  pluris  :  ace.,  with  quos. 


72 


SERMONES 


[1.  4.  34 


25      culpari  dignos.     Quemvis  media  elige  turba  : 

aut  ob  avaritiam  aut  misera  ambitione  laborat ; 

hie  nuptarum  insanit  amoribus,  hie  puerorum  ; 

hunc  capit  argenti  splendor ;  stupet  Albius  acre ; 

hie  mutat  merces  surgente  a  sole  ad  eum  quo 
30      vespertina  tepet  regio  ;  quin  per  mala  praeceps 
,    fertur,  uti  pulvis  collectus  turbine,  ne  quid 

summa  deperdat  metuens  aut  ampliet  ut  rem. 

Omnes  hi  metuunt  versus,  odere  poetas. 

'  Faenum  habet  in  cornu,  longe  f  uge  ;  dummodo  risum 


26  f.  ob  avaritiam  .  .  .  am- 
bitione: the  variation  in  con- 
struction is  intentional  and  is 
carried  still  further  in  the  follow- 
ing lines  —  hie  .  .  .  insanit,  hunc 
capit,  stupet  —  until  the  last  craze, 
the  absorption  in  business,  is 
reached ;  this,  as  a  most  con- 
spicuous and  widespread  folly,  is 
given  fuller  description  in  29-32. 
—  laborat :  a  technical  word,  used 
of  suffering "from  a  chronic  ailment. 

28.  argenti  splendor :  the 
craze  for  collecting  silver  plate 
was  a  common  one  in  Rome,  but 
Albius  is  a  person  of  independent 
judgment  who  has  a  little  special 
craze  for  bronzes.  There  are 
many  references  (e.g.  Epist.  i,  6, 
17)  to  both  of  these  '  fads.'  — 
Albius :  unknown.  He  cannot 
well  be  the  man  whose  son  was 
used  by  Horace's  father  (below, 
vs.  109)  to  illustrate  the  folly  of 
wastefulness.  —  stupet :  so  torpes, 
Sat.  2,  7,  95,  in  a  colloquial  slang, 
like  the  Engl.  nouns '  fad,' '  craze,1 
'rage.1 


29-32.  The  idea  of  passionate 
absorption  in  some  single  inter- 
est, which  is  expressed  above  by 
the  verbs  laborat,  insanit,  capit, 
stnpet,  is  in  these  lines  suggested 
by  the  elaborate  detail  of  the 
description.  —  surgente,  vesper- 
tina :  '  from  the  East  to  the  West  '  ; 
the  Romans  felt  a  kind  of  wonder 
at  the  extent  of  their  business 
enterprises.  —  praeceps  fertur:  as 
if  by  a  force  stronger  than  his  own 
will.  —  ne  .  .  .  deperdat,  ampliet 
ut  :  in  the  proper  sense  of  ut  and 
ne  after  a  verb  of  fearing. 

33.  versus,  poetas  :    an   inten- 
tional exaggeration  ;  the  dread  of 
being  satirized  leads  them  to  fear 
all  poetry. 

34.  quando      feriunt      boves, 
horum  in  cornibus  ligatur  faenum. 
Schol.     The  saying  happens  not 
to  occur  elsewhere,  but  is  given  in 
Greek  form  by  Plutarch,  Crass.  7, 


Cf.  also  Epod.  6,  1  1,  cave,  cave  ; 
namque  in  malos  asperritnus 
parata  tollo  cornua. 


».  4.  35] 


HORATI 


35 


40 

'I 


excutiat  sibi,  non  hie  cuiquam  parcet  amico ; 

et  quodcumque  semel  chartis  illeverit,  omnis 

gestiet  a  furno  redeuntis  scire  lacuque 

et  pueros  et  anus.'     Agedum,  pauca  accipe  contra. 

Primum  ego  meillorum,  dederim  quibus  esse  poetas, 
excerpam  numero  ;  neque  enim  concludere  versum 


34-38.  Two  indictments  against 
the  satirist,  that  he  finds  pleasure 
in  inflicting  pain  (cf.  laederegaudes, 
78)  and  that  he  violates  the  de- 
cent reserves  of  social  intercourse 
by  publishing  his  strictures  upon 
individuals  (repeated  in 82-85).  — 
risum  excutiat :  raise  a  laugh ; 
excntere  is  used  of  causing  tears 
(Plaut.  Capt.w^lvc.Heaut.  167) 
and  disgust  (Plaut.  Merc.  576). 

—  illeverit :  has  smeared,  scrawled. 

—  furno:    the  poorer  classes  had 
their  baking  done  in  public  ovens 
and  got  their  water  from  the  pub- 
lic pools  (lacu~).     At  these  places 
crowds  of  slaves  {pueros)  and  old 
women  (anus)  would  be  gathered. 
The  whole  involves  a  comparison  : 
the  satirist    is    no  better    than  a 
scandalmonger,    who    retails    his 
gossip  to  the  meanest  of  the  public. 

39-62.  In  these  lines  Horace 
gives  the  earliest  indication  of  that 
interest  in  the  theory  of  poetry 
which  appears  more  plainly  in  Sat. 
I,  10  and  2,  I  and  in  the  Epistles, 
and  which  culminated  in  the  Ars 
Poetica.  For  various  reasons  the 
passage  deserves  special  attention. 
It  contains  the  observations  of  a 
conscious  artist  upon  the  art  which 
he  was  practicing  with  success, 


and  such  observations  are  always 
interesting.  At  this  period  of  his 
life  Horace  was  writing  both  Sat- 
ires and  Epodes,  and  this  passage 
reveals  the  effort  that  he  was  mak- 
ing to  distinguish  between  the  two 
forms  and  to  assign  to  the  Epodes 
those  lyrical  thoughts  and  emo- 
tions which  he  found  incompatible 
with  the  conventional  limitations 
placed  upon  satire  by  Lucilius. 
And,  in  themselves,  the  lines  are 
an  admirable  illustration  of  the 
somewhat  elusive  and  colloquial 
form  of  argument  which  Horace 
habitually  employs.  The  sense, 
in  brief,  is  this :  '  Satire  is  verse, 
but  not  poetry,  since  it  lacks  the 
imaginative  thought  and  the  lofty 
expression  which  characterize  true 
poetry  and  which  remain  even 
when  the  verse-form  is  destroyed.' 

39.  poetas:  not  attracted  into  the 
dative ;  cf.  I,  I,  19,  licet  esse  beat  is. 

40.  concludere  versum :  to  round 
out  a  verse.      Verse   is  conceived 
of  as   bound,  as   shut   in   within 
the    limits    of  the    metrical    feet 
(cf.  I,  10,  59,  pedibus  .  .  .  dander e 
sem's),  while  prose  is  thought   of 
as   relaxed  (oratio  soluta    is   the 
technical  term  ;  cf.   dissolvas,  55  ; 
sotvas,  60,  below). 


74 


SERMONES 


dixeris  esse  satis,  neque  si  quis  scribat,  uti  nos, 
sermoni  propiora,  putes  hunc  esse  poetam. 
Ingenium  cui  sit,  cui  mens  divinior  atque  os 
magna  sonaturum,  des  nominis  huius  honorem. 

45      Idcirco  quidam  comoedia  necne  poema 
esset  quaesivere,  quod  acer  spiritus  ac  vis 
nee  verbis  nee  rebus  inest,  nisi  quod  pede  certo 
differt  sermoni,  sermo  merus.     '  At  pater  ardens 
saevit,  quod  meretrice  nepos  insanus  arnica 

50     films  uxorem  grandi  cum  dote  recuset, 

ebrius  et,  magnum  quod  dedecus,  ambulet  ante 


42.  sermoni  propiora :  things 
more  truly  like  conversation. 
Sermo  here  and  below,  48,  is  clearly 
defined  by  Auct.  ad  Herenn. 
3,  13,  23,  sermo  est  oratio  remissa 
et  finitima  ( =  propiora)  cottidi- 
anae  locutioni. 

43-44.  Ingenium,  mens  divi- 
nior :  not  two  distinct  characteris- 
tics, but  two  ways  of  describing  a 
single  characteristic,  an  inspired 
imagination. — os  magna  sonatu- 
rum: a  noble  style;  expressed  in 
a  figure  retained  from  the  time 
when  the  poet  sang  his  own 
verses. 

45.  quidam :  the  students  of  lit- 
erary'form,  like  the  Alexandrian 
gram  marians.  Cicero,  Or  at.  20, 67, 
also  refers  to  this  discussion.  — 
comoedia :  the  Attic  New  Comedy 
or  the  comedy  of  Plautus  and 
Terence  ;  the  rule  would  not 
apply  to  Midsummer  Night's 
Dream.  —  necne  :  the  prose  order 
would  be  quaesivere  (utrum) 


comoedia  poema  esset  necne ;    cf. 

63- 

46.  acer  spiritus  ac  vis :  lively 
and  vigorous  inspiration]  the 
same  thing  as  mens  divinior  and 
os  magna  sonaturum,  but  the  ex- 
pression is  intentionally  ambigu- 
ous, to  give  an  opening  for  the 
objection  which  follows. 

48-52.  '  But  there  is  certainly 
acer  spiritus  ac  vis  in  the  angry 
reproaches  which  a  father  in  the 
comedies  frequently  addresses  to 
a  wayward  son.'  —  nepos  :  prodi- 
gal;  used  as  an  adjective.  —  mere- 
trice  .  .  .  insanus  arnica :  mad 
with  passion  for  a  harlot  mistress ; 
meretrice  also  is  used  as  an  adj. 
with  arnica.  —  ambulet  ante  noc- 
tem  :  a  reference  to  the  comissatio, 
a  wild  procession  through  the 
streets  after  a  drinking  bout.  To 
indulge  in  such  a  revel  before 
night  would  be  particularly  dis- 
graceful. The  whole  situation 
here  is  Greek. 


75 


if  4,  523 


HQRATI 


, 


noctem  cum  facibus/-     Numquid  Pomponius  istis  y 

audiret  leviora,  pater  si  viveret  ?     Ergo 

non  satis  est  puris  versum  perscribere  verbis, 
55      quern  si  dissolvas,  quivis  stomachetur  eodem 

quo  personatus  pacto  pater.     His,  ego  quae  nunc, 

olim  quae  scripsit  Lucilius,  eripias  si 

tempora  certa  modosque,  et  quod  prius  ordine  verbum 
est 

posterius  facias,  praeponens  ultima  primis, 
60     non,  ut  si  solvas  '  Postquam  Discordia  taetra 

belli  ferrates  postis  portasque  refregit/ 

invenias  etiam  disiecti  membra  poetae. 


52.  Pomponius  :  a  name  is  used 
to  point  the  retort,  but  it  is  quite 
unlikely  that  it  refers  to  any  defi- 
nite person.  —  istis  :  '  the  kind  of 
talk  you  have  just  been  describ- 
ing.' —  The  argument  is  that  the 
acer  spiritus  ac  vis  of  comedy  is 
merely  the  anger  that  any  father 
in  real  life  might  express  and  is 
wholly  different  from  the  inspired 
imagination  of  the  poet. 

54.  puris  .  .  .  verbis :  in  plain 
everyday  language]  the  same  as 
sermo  merus  and  the  opposite  of 
os  magna  sonaturum. 

56.  personatus  .  .  .  pater:  the 
father  on  the  stage,  the  pater  ar- 
dens  of  vs.  48.  Masks  (personae) 
were  worn  by  actors  in  comedy  in 
the  time  of  Cicero.  —  his:  neut., 
dat.  after  eripias. 

58-59.  tempora  certa  modosque  : 
the  fixed  quantities  and  rhythms 
which  make  the  hexameter.  —  quod 
prius  .  .  .  primis :  i.e.  change  the 


words  from  the  order  demanded 
by  the  versification  to  the  order  of 
prose. 

60-62.  non :  with  invenias.  — 
etiam :  with  disiecti.  The  true 
poet  would  be  a  poet  still,  even 
though  torn  limb  from  limb. 
There  is  a  side  reference  to  the 
story  of  Orpheus. — Postquam.  .  . 
refregit :  a  quotation  from  the  An- 
nales  of  Ennius;  cf.  Verg.  Aen. 
7,  622,  belli  ferratos  rupit  Satur- 
nia  postis.  The  thought  might 
have  been  expressed  in  plain  prose 
by  postquam  helium  coortuin  est ; 
for  this  unadorned  statement  the 
poet  has  substituted  the  imagina- 
tive figure  of  Discord  bursting 
open  the  gates  of  Janus  and  in 
the  brief  description  has  used, 
almost  to  excess,  words  charged 
with  poetic  suggestion,  taetra,  fer- 
ratos, postis  portasque.  The  two 
essential  qualities  of  poetry,  mens 
divinior  and  os  magna  sonaturum^ 


SERMONES 


Hactenus  haec  :  alias  iustum  sit  necne  poema, 
mine  illud  tantum  quaeram,  meritone  tibi  sit 

65      suspectum  genus  hoc  scribendi.     Sulcius  acer 
ambulat  et  Caprius,  rauci  male  cumque  libellis, 
magnus  uterque  timor  latronibus ;  at  bene  si  quis 
et  vivat  puris  manibus,  contemnat  utrumque. 
Vt  sis  tu  similis  Caeli  Birrique  latronum, 

70      non  ego  sim  Capri  neque  Sulci ;  cur  metuas  me  ? 
Nulla  taberna  meos  habeat  neque  pila  libellos, 
quis  manus  insudet  volgi  Hermogenisque  Tigelli: 

would  still  remain,  even  though 
the  verse-form  were  destroyed  by 
changing  the  order  of  the  words. 

63.  alias :  sc.  quaeram.  This 
vague  intention  was  never  carried 
out,  for  the  interest  which  Horace 
felt  in  satire  came  to  an  end  with 
the  publication  of  the  Second 
Book  in  30,  and  his  later  literary 
discussions  deal  with  other  forms 
of  poetry.  —  sit :  the  subject  is 
to  be  supplied  from  genus  hoc  scri- 
bendi. 

64-65.  merito  .  .  .  suspectum : 
justly  disliked,  i.e.  'whether  your 
dislike  (cf.  vs.  33)  is  just.'  —  tibi: 
the  satire  had  begun  impersonally 
and  the  critics  of  satire  are  vaguely 
thought  of  (sunt  quos,  24;  omnes 
hi,  33)>  but  from  this  point  the 
critic  is  addressed  directly  and 
replies  for  himself ;  the  monologue 
becomes  dialogue. 

65-66.  Sulcius,  Caprius:  detec- 
tives, who  got  their  living  out  of 
the  fines  collected  on  evidence 
furnished  by  them.  Such  men 
were  a  necessary  part  of  the  Ro- 


man police  system,  but,  like  the 
pnblicani,  they  were  held  in  ill 
repute  and  the  implied  comparison 
of  the  satirist  to  a  detective  was 
intentionally  offensive.  —  libellis  : 
notebooks  in  which  the  evidence 
was  recorded. 

69.  Vt  sis  tu :  however  true  it 
may  be  that  you  are  like  a  high- 
wayman. The  honest-_£Jtizen 
does  not  fear  a  detective,  and  u 
man  who  says  that  he  dreads  a 
satirist  as  he  would  a  detective 
forgets  that  he  is  thereby  compar- 
ing himself  to  a  criminal. 

70  ff .  sim,  habeat :  '  I  should 
not  be  like  the  detective,  for 
my  notes  would  not  be  pub- 
lished.' But  the  faint  hypotheti- 
cal shading  passes  over  into  the 
indie,  recito. — taberna  :  bookshop, 
where  books  were  apparently  hung 
upon  the  posts  (pilae,  cf.  colum- 
nae,  A.  P.  373)  to  be  examined 
by  purchasers,  as  second-hand 
books  are  now  exposed  for  sale 
outside  the  bookshops.  —  quis : 
quibits.  —  Tigelli:  cf.  Sat.  I,  3, 


77 


4,  73] 


HORATI 


nec  recito  cuiquam  nisi  amicis,  idque  coactus, 
non  ubivis  coramve  quibuslibet.     In  medio  qui 

75      scripta  foro  recitent  sunt  multi,  quique  lavantes : 
suave  locus  voci  resonat  conclusus.     Inanis 
hoc  iuvat,  baud  illud  quaerentis,  num  sine  sensu, 
tempore  num  faciant  alieno.     '  Laedere  gaudes,' 
inquis,  'et  hoc  studio  pravus  facis.'     Vnde  petitum 

8c     hoc  in  me  iacis  ?     Est  auctor  quis  denique  eorum 
vixi  cum  quibus  ?     '  Absentem  qui  rodit,  amicum 


4  n.  —  The  declaration  that  the 
Satires  were  not  written  for 
publication  seems  at  first  sight 
irreconcilable  with  the  fact  that 
this  satire  is  itself  a  reply  to  criti- 
cisms based  upon  a  knowledge  of 
the  earlier  Satires,  especially  the 
second.  But  the  method  of  mul- 
tiplying copies  by  hand  made  it 
possible  to  limit  the  circulation  of 
a  poem,  so  that  it  might  be  some- 
what widely  read  without  being 
offered  for  sale  or  put  into  general 
circulation.  The  collection  and 
publication  of  the  whole  book  was 
evidently  a  later  decision. 

73.  recito :  the  habit  of  giving 
private  readings  from  one's  own 
works  became  later  so  common  as 
to  be  ridiculous,  and  Horace  here 
recognizes  its  possible  exaggera- 
tions. But  Vergil  read  parts  of 
the  Aeneid  to  Augustus  and  others, 
and  Ovid  (Tristia,  4,  10,  49)  was 
present  at  a  reading  given  by 
Horace. 

75  f .  lavantes :  in  the  public 
baths,  where  men  were  at  leisure ; 
but  Horace  attributes  the  choice 


of  the  location  to  the  pleasure  the 
reader  had  in  hearing  his  voice 
reverberating  from  the  arched 
ceiling  (locus  .  .  .  conclusus). 

76.  Inanis :  emphatic ;  men  are 
fools  to  find  pleasure  in  that. 

78  f.  Laedere  gaudes,  studio : 
the  emphasis  of  this  second  accu- 
sation is  upon  the  mean  pleasure 
that  the  satirist  finds  in  wounding 
the  feelings  of  others.  —  studio : 
intentionally. 

79-80.  Vnde  .  .  .  iacis  ?  What 
is  the  source  of  this  accusation  that 
you  are  hurling  at  me  f  This  de- 
mand for  his  authority  the  critic 
meets  indirectly  by  saying,  in 
effect,  '  I  do  not  need  to  quote  the 
testimony  of  others,  for  your  own 
conduct  —  your  criticism  of  your 
friends,  your  lack  of  decent  reti- 
cence—  proves  that  you  are  a 
deliberate  defamer.' 

81.  Absentem  qui  rodit :  he  who 
slanders  a  man  behind  his  back. 
—  amicum  goes  with  the  following 
clause,  as  in  all  the  other  clauses 
a  word  or  two  precedes  the  rela- 
tive. 


SERMONES 


qui  non  defendit,  alio  culpante,  solutos 

qui  captat  risus  hominum  famamque  dicacis, 

fingere  qui  non  visa  potest,  commissa  tacere 

85      qui  nequit,  hie  niger  est,  hunc  tu,  Romane,  caveto.' 
Saepe  tribus  lectis  videas  cenare  quaternos, 
e  quibus  unus  amet  quavis  aspergere  cunctos 
praeter  eum  qui  praebet  aquam  ;  post  huncquoquepotus, 
condita  cum  verax  aperit  praecordia  Liber. 

90      Hie  tibi  comis  et  urbanus  liberque  videtur, 
infesto  nigris;  ego  si  risi,  quod  ineptus 

usual  number  was  nine,  three  on 
each  couch,  and  the  motive  for 
specifying  an  unusual  number  is 
not  clear.  Perhaps  it  is  connected 
with  the  emphasis  upon  unus;  'if 
you  go  a  little  beyond  the  usual 
number  of  guests,  you  will  find 
that  you  have  included  one,  at 
least,  who  is  witty  at  the  expense 
of  the  rest.' 

87  f.  aspergere  :  besprinkle  with- 
personal  jokes.  The  figure  leads 
to  the  selection  of  the  phrase  qui 
praebet  aquam  (water  for  washing 
the  hands)  to  designate  the 
host. 

88.  post:  adv.  —  hunc:  sc.  as- 
pergit.  —  potus  :  absolute  ;  cf.  Sat. 


82.  defendit :  the  final  syllable 
is  long  under  the  ictus.  Both 
Horace  and  Vergil  frequently  pre- 
serve the  original  long  vowel  in 
perf.  forms  likeyf^z"/,  subiit,  but  the 
vowel  of  the  pres.  3d  sing.,  3d 
conj.,  was  not  originally  long, 
and  this  instance  and  agit  {Sat.  2, 
3,  260)  must  be  explained  by 
false  analogy.  The  few  instances 
quoted  from  Plautus  are  doubtful. 

84.  commissa  tacere :   the  Ro- 
mans placed  a  peculiarly  high  valu- 
ation upon  the  ability  to  keep  a 
secret ;    cf.  Epist.    i ,   1 8,  70,  nee 
retinent  patulae  commissa  fideliter 
aures. 

85.  niger :  black  at  heart.     So 
Catullus,   93,   2,  says   of    Caesar, 
nee  (studeo)  scire  utrum  sis  albus 
an    ater   homo. —  Romane:    true 
Roman,  i.e.  an  honest  gentleman. 
Such  expressions  of  national  pride 
are  common ;   echt  Deutsch,  and, 
for  the  opposite,  un-English,  un- 
American.  —  caveto :      formal    in 
-style,  like  an  oracular  utterance. 

86.  tribus,      quaternos :        the 


89.  An  intentionally  elaborate 
expression  of  the  common  idea 
in  vino  veritas. 

90-93.  '  Such  conduct  you  con- 
sider, and  rightly,  mere  friendly 
raillery  ;  my  little  jokes,  however, 
you  are  very  ready  to  condemn.' 
—  infesto  nigris  :  i.e.  '  you  who 
call  me  niger  in  so  hostile  a  tone.' 


79 


If  4,  92] 


HORATI 


pastillos  Rufillus  olet,  Gargonius  hircum, 
lividus  et  mordax  videor  tibi  ?     Mentio  si  qua 
de  Capitolini  furtis  iniecta  Petilli 

95      te  coram  fusrit,  defendas,  ut  tuus  est  mos : 
'  Me  Capitolinus  convictore  usus  amicoque 
a  puero  est,  causaque  mea  permulta  rogatus 
fecit,  et  incolumis  laetor  quod  vivit  in  urbe ; 
sed  tamen  admiror,  quo  pacto  iudicium  illud 

ioo    fugerit.'     Hie  nigrae  sucus  loliginis,  haec  est 

aerugo  mera.     Quod  vitium  procul  afore  chartis, 


92.  Quoted  from  Sat.  I,  2,  27. 
But  it  is  quite  unlikely  that  either 
of  these  persons,  who  were  used 
to  illustrate  the  extremes  of  fop- 
pishness and  of  neglect  of  cleanli- 
ness, is  more  than  a  mere  name. 

93  ff.  An  example  of  really 
malicious  slander,  to  be  distin- 
guished from  friendly  banter,  co- 
mitas  and  libertas. — Mentio  .  .  . 
iniecta :  if  some  one  happens  to 
mention.  —  Petilli :  a  Petillius  was 
quaestor  about  43  B.C.  and  was 
acquitted,  apparently  against  the 
evidence,  on  a  charge  of  pecula- 
tion. The  name  Petillius  Capito- 
linus is  also  found  on  coins.  That 
the  trial  was  well  known  and 
that  the  accused  owed  much  to  the 
skill  of  his  lawyers  is  implied  by 
the  reference  in  Sat.  i,  10,  26  to 
the  dura  causa  Petilli.  But  the 
further  statement  of  the  scholiast 
that  Petillius  had  stolen  the  crown 
from  the  head  of  the  Capitoline 
Jupiter  is  a  mere  confusion  with  a 
popular  saying  which  is  as  old  as 
Plautus  (Men.  941,  Trin.  83). 


96.  convictore  usus :  /  have 
been  a  frequent  guest  of  Capi- 
tolinus ;  cf.  I,  6,  47,  where  Horace 
calls  himself  a  convictor  of  Mae- 
cenas.—  This  verse  is  hypermetric 
like  I,  6,  1 02,  which  also  ends  in 
an  enclitic. 

98.  incolumis   ...   in   urbe: 
acquitted  and  not  exiled. 

99.  admiror :    in   English    the 
corresponding    phrase    would    be 
'  but     I     can't     help     wondering 
how  he  managed  to  keep  out  of 
jail.' 

100.  nigrae  .  .  .  loliginis:  the 
black  ink  of  the   cuttlefish,   with 
transference  of  the  adj.  and  a  refer- 
ence back    to    vs.    85.  —  aerugo: 
verdigris,  copper  rust,  which  was 
thought  of  as   an   eating  poison. 
Together  the  two  figures  express 
the   same    quality    as    lividus  et 
mordax,  93,  and  niger,  85,  and  the 
opposite  of  comis  et  urbanus,  90, 
just  as  in  the  preceding  paragraph, 
39-62,  the  qualities  of  poetry  and 
prose  are   repeatedly  defined  and 
contrasted. 


80 


SERMONES 


[1,4,  in 


atque  animo  prius,  ut  si  quid  promittere  de  me 
possum  aliud  vere,  promitto.    /Liberius  si 
_  dixero  quid,  si  forte  iocosius,  hoc  mihi  iuris 

105    cum  venia  dabis  :  insuevit  pater  optimus  hoc  me, 
ut  fugerem  exemplis  vitiorum  quaeque  notando. 
Cu^i  me  hortaretur,  parce  frugaliter  atque 
viverem  uti  contentus  eo  quod  mi  ipse  parasset : 
'  Nonne  vides  Albi  ut  male  vivat  films  utque 

no   Baius  inops  ?     Magnum  documentum  ne  patriam  rem 
perdere  quis  velit.'     A  turpi  meretricis  amore 


102.  animo  prius :  i.e.  he  will 
first  of  all  keep  malice  out  of  his 
heart,  and  then  it  will  certainly  not 
appear  in  his  writings.  —  ut  si  quid 
. . .  promitto :  a  colloquial  confusion 
of  ut .  .  .  promittere  possum  and  si 
quid  promittere  possum ;  *I  prom- 
ise this  as  surely  as  I  can  promise 
anything.' 

103-106.  '  Malice  I  promise  to 
avoid,  but  a  considerable  freedom 
of  speech  and  jest  (liberius, 
iocosius,  with  a  reference  back  to 
vs.  90)  you  must  permit  (hoc  iuris 
dabis)  and  pardon  (cum  venia)."1 
—  hoc  me :  double  ace.  after  in- 
suevit, which  is  here  a  verb  of 
teaching,  hoc  is  not  precisely 
liberius  dicere,  but  the  humorously 
observant  attitude  of  mind  of 
which  a  habit  of  friendly  bantering 
may  be  the  expression.  The 
structure  of  106  is  somewhat  in- 
volved ;  notando  is  the  leading 
word,  ifitiorum  quaeque  depends 
upon  it,  exemplis  is  an  abl.  of 
means  with  it,  and  ut  fugerem 

HOR.  SAT.  —  6  8 1 


expresses  its  purpose.  '  I  owe 
my  habit  of  observing  the  follies 
of  men  to  my  father ;  he  used  to 
point  out  all  sorts  of  errors  in  con- 
crete cases  —  in  the  conduct  of 
individuals  —  in  order  to  teach  me 
to  avoid  them.' 

107-108.  The  order  is  uti  parce 
atque  frugaliter  viverem  ;  the 
whole  passage,  101-108,  is  some- 
what confusedly  written. 

109.  Albi :  not  the  Albius  of 
vs.  28.  The  point  of  the  illustra- 
tion —  ne  patriam  rem  perdere 
quis  velit —  would  be  spoiled  if  the 
father  had  wasted  the  property ; 
Albi  filius  is  the  spendthrift  son 
of  a  prosperous  father,  and  so  an 
excellent  illustration  (tnagnum 
documentum)  of  the  conduct  which 
Horace's  prosperous  father  wished 
his  own  son  to  avoid.  All  these 
instances  are  reminiscences  of 
Horace's  boyhood  (cf.  121)  and 
the  persons  mentioned  are  un- 
known. —  male  vivat :  i.e.  in 
wretched  poverty. 


1,4,  "2] 


HORATI 


cum  deterreret :  '  Scetani  dissimilis  sis.' 

Ne  sequerer  moechas,  concessa  cum  venere  uti 

possem  :  '  Deprensi  non  bella  est  fama  Treboni,' 

115    aiebat.     '  Sapiens,  vitatu  quidque  petitu 

sit  melius,  causas  reddet  tibi ;  mi  satis  est,  si 
traditum  ab  antiquis  morem  servare  tuamque, 
dum  custodis  eges,  vitam  famamque  tueri 
incolumem  possum;  simul  ac  duraverit  aetas 

120    membra  animumque  tuum,  nabis  sine  cortice.'     Sic  me 
formabat  puerum  dictis ;  et  sive  iubebat 
ut  facerem  quid  :  '  Habes  auctorem,  quo  facias  hoc/ 
unum  ex  iudicibus  selectis  obiciebat ; 


115.  Sapiens:  a  philosopher,^ 
teacher  of  the  theory  of  ethics,  in 
contrast  with  mi,  116,  the  practi- 
cal instructor  of  youth.  —  quidque : 
quid  vitatu  petituque]  cf.  vs.  17 
n.     The   two  words   express   the 
malum  and  bonum  of  philosophy, 
as  these   ideas  are  expressed  in 
Sat.  i,  3,  114,  by  bona  diversis, 
fugienda  petendis. 

116.  causas    reddet:     will   ex- 
plain, as  a  matter  of  theory. 

1 1 8.  custodis,  vitam  famam- 
que :  not  only  the  character 
(vitam)  but  also  the  good  name 
(famant)  of  a  Roman  boy  of 
respectable  family  was  carefully 
guarded  up  to  the  time  when  he 
assumed  the  toga  virilis.  Cf.  Sat. 
I,  6,  82  if.,  pudicum  .  .  .  ser-va-vit 
ab  omni  non  solum  facto,  verum 
opprobrio  quoque  turpi,  where 
facto  corresponds  to  vitam  and 
opprobrio  to  famam. 

121  f.    sive :    the   apodosis    is, 


82 


grammatically,  obiciebat,  but  this 
verb,  preceded  by  the  direct  quo- 
tation, implies  a  verb  of  saying ; 
'  when  he  advised  a  particular 
course  of  conduct,  he  used  to  say, 
"  There  is  your  example,"  pointing 
out  .  .  .  '  —  ut  facerem :  depend- 
ing on  iubebat.  Horace  elsewhere 
uses  the  infin.  with  iubeo,  but  the 
construction  with  ut  is  perfectly 
good  Latin  (Plautus,  Cicero,  Livy). 
[To  supply  aliquid,  duplicating 
quid,  and  to  make  ut  facerem  de- 
pend on  obiciebat  or  the  supplied 
verb  of  saying,  is  to  resort  to  an  arti- 
ficial construction  in  order  to  avoid 
supposing  that  Horace  in  a  single 
instance  uses  a  good  Latin  construc- 
tion which  he  elsewhere  avoids.] 

123.  iudicibus  selectis :  the 
panel  of  special  jurymen  selected 
by  the  praetor  urbanus  to  act  in 
criminal  cases.  They  were  likely 
to  be  citizens  of  character  and 
standing. 


SERMONES 


£lp  4,  136 


sive  vetabat :  '  An  hoc  inhonestum  et  inutile  f actu 
125    necne  sit  addubites,  flagret  rumore  malo  cum 

hie  atque  ille  ? '     Avidos  vicinum  f  unus  ut  aegros 
exanimat,  mortisque  metu  sibi  parcere  cogit, 
sic  teneros  animos  aliena  opprobria  saepe 
absterrent  vitiis.     Ex  hoc  ego,  sanus  ab  illis 
130    perniciem  quaecumque  ferunt,  mediocribus  et  quis 
ignoscas  vitiis  teneor ;  fortassis  et  istinc 
largiter  abstulerit  longa  aetas,  liber  amicus, 
consilium  proprium  :  neque  enim,  cum  lectulus  aut  me 
porticus  excepit,  desum  mihi.     '  Rectius  hoc  est.' 
135    '  Hoc  faciens  vivam  melius.'     *  Sic  dulcis  amicis 

occurram.'     '  Hoc  quidam  non  belle ;  numquid  ego  illi 


124  f.  An:  introducing  the 
main  question,  addubites.  The 
indirect  question  is  (utruni)  in- 
honestum sit  necne',  cf.  45  and 
60,  notes.  —  hoc :  some  forbidden 
act. 

126  f.  Avidos  :  gluttons,  in  the 
literal  sense,  whom  the  sight  of 
death  reminds  of  the  consequences 
of  self-indulgence.  —  sibi  parcere : 
<to  take  some  care  of  their  own 
health.' 

129.  Ex  hoc:  as  a  result  of 
this,  of  such  training  by  his 
father. 

130 ff.  quis  ignoscas:  pardon- 
able] there  was  no  adj.  ignosci- 
bilis  in  use  in  the  time  of  Horace. 
quis  is  a  dative. — et  istinc:  even 
from  these,  i.e.  the  slight  and 
pardonable  faults.  — liber :  frank ; 
cf.  Sat.  I,  3,  52. 

133  ff.   consilium       proprium: 


'my  own  reflections'  (Palmer), 
based  upon  such  observations  as 
those  which  follow.  —  neque  enim : 
takes  up  consilium  firopriu'h  and 
expands  it,  thus  providing  for  the 
return  of  the  thought  to  the  sub- 
ject of  satire.  —  lectulus  :  reading 
couch.  —  porticus  :  the  public  col- 
onnade, a  place  which  would  give 
opportunity  to  observe  the  con- 
duct of  others  who  were  strolling 
there.  —  hoc,  hoc,  sic,  hoc :  each 
refers  to  some  act  of  another  per- 
son which  attracts  his  attention 
and  serves  as  an  example  to  be 
followed  or  a  warning.  —  quidam : 
so  and  so.  —  belle  :  a  colloquial 
word ;  '  not  pretty  conduct  of  so 
and  so.'  —  numquid:  suggesting 
a  negative ;  '  I  hope  I  shall  not 
sometime  (plim)  when  I  am  off 
my  guard  (imprudens)  do  any- 
thing like  that.' 


'» 4,  '37] 


HORATI 


imprudens  olim  faciam  simile  ?'     Haec  ego  mecum 
compressis  agito  labris ;  ubi  quid  datur  oti, 
illudo  chartis.     Hoc  est  mediocribus  illis 
•40    ex  vitiis  unum  ;  cui  si  concedere  nolis, 

multa  poetarum  veniet  manus  auxilio  quae 

sit  mihi  (nam  multo  plures  sum  us),  ac  veluti  te 

ludaei  cogemus  in  hanc  concedere  turbam. 


137  f .  Haec  agito :  so  I  think  to 
myself,  recurring  to  the  thought 
of  neqiie  .  .  .  desum  mihi  and 
consilium  proprium.  —  compressis 
.  .  .  labris :  i.e.  '  I  say  nothing  at 
the  time,  but  wait  till  I  get  home 
and  then  write  it  down.' 

139.  illudo  chartis  :   cf.  chartis 
tileverit,  vs.  36.    A  jokingly  apolo- 
getic way  of  describing  the  writing 
of  satire.  —  mediocribus :  referring 
back  to  vs.  130. 

140.  concedere:  pardon;  cf.  i, 

3,85- 

141  f.  multa  .  .  .  manus,  mul- 
to plures :  with  joking  exaggera- 
tion he  says  that  the  poets  are 
in  the  majority  and  can  compel 
the  critics  to  join  their  party,  as 
it  is  sometimes  said  now  'every- 
body writes  novels.'  But  it  was  a 
fact  that  light  verse  writing  was 
a  frequent  amusement  of  educated 


Romans  —  Pliny  gives  a  long  list 
of  famous  names  —  and  that  it 
was  especially  characteristic  of  the 
Augustan  Age,  when  politics  no 
longer  offered  a  career. 

143.  ludaei:  the  best  commen- 
tary on  this  allusion  is  chap.  28 
of  Cicero's  speech  -pro  Flacco,  in 
which  he  refers  to  the  number  and 
influence  of  the  Jews  in  Rome 
(scis  quanta  sit  manus,  quanta 
concordia,  quantum  valeat  in  con- 
tionibus),  to  their  religion  (huic 
barbarae  superstition!)  and  their 
obstinate  resistance  to  Roman 
ideals  (istorum  religio  sacrorum 
a  splendore  huius  imperii,  gravi- 
tate nominis  nostri,  maiorum  insti- 
tutis  abhorrebat).  To  a  Roman, 
who  admitted  the  gods  of  for- 
eigners easily  to  his  Pantheon,  the 
desire  of  the  Jew  to  m;.ke  con- 
verts was  wholly  unintelligible. 


The  evidence  for  the  date  of  this  satire  is  found  in  vs.  27-29;  Mae- 
cenas and  Cocceius  (L.  Cocceius  Nerva)  were  making  the  journey  to 
Brundisium  on  an  important  mission,  to  reconcile  friends  who  were  at 
variance,  a  mission  which  they  had  performed  before.  The  aversi 
ainici  (29)  can  be  only  the  younger  Caesar,  and  Antonius,  whose  re- 

84 


SERMONES  [i,  5 

lations  were  never  clearly  defined  and  were  in  constant  need  of  read- 
justment. In  the  year  40  B.C.  an  arrangement  called  the  Treaty  of 
Brundisium  was  made  by  Maecenas,  representing  Caesar,  Asinius 
Pollio,  representing  Antonius,  and  Cocceius,  as  the  friend  of  both 
sides.  This  explains  soliti  componere  (29).  In  the  following  years, 
39-38  B.C.,  Caesar  was  twice  defeated  by  the  fleet  of  Sextus  Pompeius 
and  was  obliged  to  call  upon  Antonius  for  aid.  Antonius  came  to 
Brundisium  in  the  spring  of  39,  but  Caesar  did  not  meet  him  at  that 
time,  or,  so  far  as  is  known,  send  representatives  to  a  conference.  But 
in  the  autumn  of  38,  the  difficulties  with  Sextus  Pompeius  increasing, 
Maecenas  was  sent  to  Athens  to  confer  with  Antonius.  With  him  went 
Fonteius  Capito,  as  a  friend  of  Antonius,  and  Cocceius,  presumably  to 
be  a  referee,  as  on  the  previous  occasion,  and  the  three  ambassadors 
were  accompanied  on  the  overland  journey  to  the  port  of  Brundisium 
by  a  party  of  literary  friends,  Horace,  Vergil,  Plotius  Tucca  and  Varius 
(the  two  friends  to  whom  the  publication  of  the  Aeneid  was  intrusted 
after  the  death  of  Vergil),  and  a  Greek  rhetorician,  Heliodorus.  The 
satire  was  probably  written  soon  after  the  date  of  the  journey,  late  in 
38  or  early  in  37. 

The  connection  of  thought  is  simple ;  the  satire  is  a  rather  bare 
recital  of  the  events  of  the  journey,  with  some  description  of  humorous 
episodes  and  adventures.  The  route  can  be  easily  followed  on  a  map 
and  the  daily  stages  are  for  the  most  part  indicated.  But  Horace  was 
not  writing  a  guidebook  of  the  well-known  route,  and  he  has  intention- 
ally paraphrased  the  names  of  some  places  (24,  37,  45,  79  f.,  87)  and 
has  used  phrases  which  leave  it  uncertain  whether  the  party  spent  a 
night  at  Anxur,  at  Capua,  or  at  Beneventum.  The  journey  was  made 
partly  on  foot  (though  this  is  not  certain),  partly  in  a  canal  boat,  but 
chiefly  by  riding  or  driving.  The  distance  was  about  340  English 
miles,  the  time  from  twelve  to  fifteen  days. 

The  satire  has  a  certain  accidental  interest  from  the  glimpses  it  gives 
of  the  manner  of  traveling  in  the  year  38  B.C.,  and  it  contains  a  few 
interesting  personal  allusions  (27-29,  32-33,  and  especially  39-44),  but 
it  is  for  the  most  part  made  up  of  trivialities.  It  falls  short  to  a  sur- 
prising degree  of  the  account  which  we  should  expect  Horace  to  give  of 
a  fortnight's  association  with  a  group  of  men  so  cultivated  and  so  emi- 
nent. There  are  two  explanations  of  the  limitations  of  the  satire.  In 
the  first  place,  personal  biography  and  reminiscence  are  modern ;  they 
had  not  made  a  place  in  ancient  literature.  The  nearest  approach  to 
them  would  be  in  books  like  Caesar's  Commentaries  or  Cicero's  account 
of  his  consulship  —  both  in  reality  political  pamphlets  —  or  in  the 

85 


I,  5.  I]  HORATI 

collection  of  Cicero's  letters  and  of  his  witticisms.  There  are  no  true 
parallels  in  Latin  literature  to  the  many  books  of  personal  reminiscence 
which  enrich  modern  literature.  In  the  second  place,  Horace  was 
deliberately  attempting  a  very  different  task ;  he  was  writing  a  satire 
which  was  intended  to  be  a  close  parallel  to  the  similar  description  of  a 
journey  in  the  Third  Book  of  Lucilius,  and  he  has  therefore  been  more 
closely  bound  by  tradition  in  this  satire  than  in  any  other.  He  was 
deliberately  following  a  particular  model  and  setting  himself  and  his 
art  in  the  closest  possible  comparison  with  the  work  of  Lucilius.  Un- 
fortunately, the  fragments  of  the  satire  of  Lucilius  are  too  scanty  — 
about  50  verses,  98-147  in  Marx  —  to  enable  us  to  follow  the  corre- 
spondence into  details. 

Egressum  magna  me  accepit  Aricia  Roma 
hospitio  modico  ;  rhetor  comes  Heliodorus, 
Graecorum  longe  doctissimus ;  inde  Forum  Appi, 
differtum  nautis  cauponibus  atque  malignis. 
5       Hoc  iter  ignavi  divisimus,  altius  ac  nos 

praecinctis  unum ;  minus  est  gravis  Appia  tardis. 

x.   magna:  in  contrast  with  the  Appi    to    Feronia. —  cauponibus 

small  town  of  Aricia  and  its  mod-  .  .  .  malignis :  cf.  Sat.  I,  I,  29.     A 

est  inn.  propensity  to  dishonesty  and  stin- 

2.  hospitio :  the  well-to-do  Ro-  giness  is  a  traditional  attribute  of 
man  had  friends  or  connections  in  innkeepers. 

many  places  by  whom  he  was  re-  5.  Hoc  iter:  the  stretch  of  nearly 
ceived  as  a  guest  (cf.  38,  50),  so  40  English  miles  from  Rome  to 
that  he  was  rarely  obliged  to  de-  Forum  Appi.  —  divisimus :  i.e.  we 
pend  upon  the  public  inns,  and  the  made  two  day's  journeys  of  it,  stop- 
inns  were  in  consequence  rather  ping  halfway  at  Aricia  —  altius 
humble  places  of  entertainment  .  .  .  praecinctis :  cf.  £v£o>i>oj  and 
(cf.  71  if.).  the  scriptural  phrase  'to  gird  up 

3.  longe  doctissimus  :  a  humor-  the  loins ' ;  the  opposite  of  ignavi 
ous  and  not  unfriendly  superlative ;  and  tardis.     The  words,  however, 
cf.  vss.  39  and  50.     A  considerable  might  be  used  figuratively  of  any 
part  of  the  humor  of  the  satire  is  in  energetic  traveler  and  do  not  quite 
the  form  of  obvious  exaggerations  prove  that  this  part  of  the  journey 
of  discomforts  (4,  7,  80,  88,  91,  95).  was  made  on  foot. 

4.  nautis :    boatmen,    employed  6.    tardis :  to  those  who  travel 
upon  the  canal  which  ran  through  slowly.     But  the  point  of  the  re- 
the  Pomptine  marshes  from  Forum  mark  b  not  quite  clear.     As  the 

86 


SERMONES 


Hie  ego  propter  aquam,  quod  erat  deterrima,  ventri 

indico  bellum,  cenantis  baud  animo  aequo 

exspectans  comites.     lam  nox  inducere  terris 

umbras  et  caelo  diffundere  signa  parabat; 

turn  pueri  nautis,  pueris  convicia  nautae 

ingerere :  '  Hue  appelle ! '     '  Trecentos  inseris ! '  '  Ohe, 

iam  satis  est ! '     Dum  aes  exigitur,  dum  mula  ligatur, 

tota  abit  bora ;  mali  culices  ranaeque  palustres 

avertunt  somnos ;  absentem  cantat  amicam 

multa  prolutus  vappa  nauta  atque  viator 

certatim ;  tandem  fessus  dormire  viator 


via  Appia  was  one  of  the  best  of 
Roman  roads,  it  seems  necessary 
to  take  it  as  a  general  observation, 
carrying  on  the  humorous  confes- 
sion of  laziness  in  ignavi;  '  travel- 
ing isn't  so  bad  if  you  are  not  too 
energetic  about  it.' 

8.  indico  bellum :  parody  of 
serious  style.  As  the  poor  water 
had  affected  his  digestion,  he  cut 
off  the  supplies,  and  his  annoyance 
(hand  aequo  animo)  at  having  to 
go  without  his  dinner  was  increased 
by  his  being  obliged  to  wait  while 
Heliodorus  and  the  slaves  dined. 

9-10.  Iam  nox  .  .  .  parabat :  par- 
ody of  the  epic  style  ;  cf.  2,  6,  100  f., 
iamque  tenebat  nox  medium  caeli 
spatium,  in  the  story  of  the  Town 
Mouse  and  the  Country  Mouse. 

11.  pueri :  the  slaves  of  the  em- 
barking travelers. 

12.  Hue   appelle :    a  cry   from 
some  slave  on   the   bank,  as  the 
boat   was   picking  up  passengers 
from  the  various  inns.     The  other 


shouts  are  complaints  of  over- 
crowding from  the  passengers  al- 
ready on  board.  —  Trecentos :  of  a 
round  number,  like  sescenti,  du- 
centi,  i,  4,  9. 

14  ff .  The  experiences  of  the 
night  are  told  in  a  series  of  uncon- 
nected sentences,  without  com- 
ment, as  things  that  speak  for 
themselves.  [I  have  omitted  the 
indefensible  ut  in  15,  which  was 
inserted  by  a  copyist  who  did  not 
understand  the  asyndeta.~\ 

16  ff.  nauta,  viator:  ' nauta  in 
navi,  viator  vero  qui  mulam  duce- 
bat.1  Aero.  This  is  certainly 
the  correct  explanation,  since  a 
canal  boat  requires  a  steersman 
(nanta),  as  well  as  a  driver  on  the 
towpath  (viator).  The  driver 
is  the  first  to  get  tired ;  he  stops 
for  a  nap  and  the  steersman  jumps 
ashore,  ties  up  the  mule,  and  lies 
down  with  him.  [The  note  of 
Porphyrio,  in  which  viatores  re- 
fers to  the  passengers  on  the  boat, 


HORATI 


25 


incipit,  ac  missae  pastum  retinacula  mulae 
nauta  piger  saxo  religat  stertitque  supinus. 
lamque  dies  aderat,  nil  cum  procedere  lintrem 
sentimus,  donee  cerebrosus  prosilit  unus 
ac  mulae  nautaeque  caput  lumbosque  saligno 
f uste  dolat ;  quarta  vix  demum  exponimur  hora. 
Ora  manusque  tua  lavimus,  Feronia,  lympha. 
Milia  turn  pransi  tria  repimus,  atque  subimus 
impositum  saxis  late  candentibus  Anxur. 
Hue  venturus  erat  Maecenas,  optimus  atque 
Cocceius,  missi  magnis  de  rebus  uterque 


is  usually  taken  as  the  starting 
point  of  the  explanation  of  this 
passage ;  wrongly,  I  think.]  — 
retinacula :  occurs  only  in  plur. ; 
the  halter. 

20  ff.  lam  .  .  .  aderat .  .  .  cum 
.  .  .  sentimus  :  a  good  example  of 
cum  inversum,  in  parody  of  the 
epic  style  (Rolfe) .  —  The  meter 
of  vs.  22  is  jokingly  suggestive 
of  the  repeated  blows.  — saligno 
fuste:  i.e.  with  a  cudgel  which 
he  gets  from  the  willows  along 
the  bank. — dolat:  slang,  like 
'  polishes  off,'  '  trims  up.1  dolare 
is  a  slang  term  in  Plaut.  (M.  G., 
938,  Men.  859),  though  in  a 
slightly  different  sense.  —  quarta 
.  .  .  hora:  about  ten  o'clock. — 
vix  demum :  an  expression  of  an- 
noyance at  the  discomforts  of 
travel,  as  the  modern  traveler 
recalls  the  lateness  of  his  train ; 
while  vs.  24  is  a  reminiscence 
of  the  comfort  of  a  bath  and 
breakfast  after  a  wretched  night. 


24.  Feronia :  a  goddess  whose 
temple  and  fountain  were  near  the 
end  of  the  canal. 

25  f .  subimus :  the  regular  verb 
for  going  toward  a  high  place ; 
Anxur  was  an  old  city  on  the  hill, 
Tarracina  the  newer  town  at  the 
foot  of  the  hill. — late  candenti- 
bus :  cf.  Epod.  i,  29,  super ni 
villa  candens  Tusculi  and  Mar- 
tial, 5,  i,  6,  candidiis  Anxur. 
The  cliffs  are  of  white  lime- 
stone. 

27.  Hue  venturus  erat :  the  offi- 
cial  members   of    the   party   had 
perhaps   been  in  conference  with 
the  younger  Caesar  at  some  coun- 
try house    in   the    neighborhood. 
The  tense  of  venturus  erat  means 
'it  had   been   arranged    that    he 
should  come.' 

28.  Cocceius:      L.      Cocceius 
Nerva,    consul    in    36    B.C.,    the 
great-grandfather  of  the  emperor 
Nerva.     See  also  the  introduction 
to  this  satire. 


88 


SERMONES 


37 


legati,  aversos  soliti  componere  amicos. 
30      Hie  oculis  ego  nigra  meis  collyria  lippus 

illinere.     Interea  Maecenas  advenit  atque 

Cocceius,  Capitoque  simul  Fonteius,  ad  unguem 

factus  homo,  Antoni,  non  ut  magis  alter,  amicus. 

Fundos  Aufidio  Lusco  praetore  libenter 
35      linquimus,  insani  ridentes  praemia  scribae, 

praetextam  et  latum  clavum  prunaeque  vatillum. 

In  Mamurrarum  lassi  deinde  urbe  manemus, 


30  f.  Cf.  Sat.  i,  3,  25  n.  The 
mention  of  this  personal  trifle, 
like  the  allusions  to  other  details, 
gives  the  effect  of  a  diary,  and 
this  is  heightened  by  the  use  of 
the '  historical '  infinitive.  Cf.  Sat. 
i,  9,  9-10,  and  66. 

32  f.  Capito:  C.  Fonteius 
Capito,  consul  in  33  B.C.,  the 
representative  of  Antonius  in  the 
conference. — ad  unguem  factus 
homo :  the  figure  is  said  to  be 
taken  from  the  habit  of  testing  the 
smoothness  of  a  surface  by  passing 
the  edge  of  the  thumb  nail  over  it. 
The  expression  was  proverbial,  like 
the  English  'a  polished  gentle- 
man' or  'a  man,  every  inch  of 
him,'  and  there  is  an  intentional 
courtesy  in  the  compliment  to  the 
representative  of  Antonius.  —  non 
ut  magis  alter :  so  Nepos,  Epam.  2, 
eruditus  sic  ut  nemo  Thebanus 
magis. 

34-36.  As  the  distinguished 
travelers  passed  through  Fundi, 
they  were  met  by  the  mayor  of  the 
town  in  his  robes  of  office.  — 
Aufidio  .  .  .  praetore  :  a  formal 


89 


expression,  like  Caesare  et  Bibulo 
consulibus.  as  if  it  fixed  a  date. 
It  is  not  certain  whether  the  chief 
magistrate  of  Fundi  was  properly 
called  praetor  or  the  word  is  used 
in  derision.  —  libenter :  the  formal 
reception  bored  them. — insani 
.  .  .  scribae  :  i.e.  he  had  formerly 
been  a  clerk  (cf.  66,  below)  and 
was  too  much  elated  by  his  rise  in 
station.  —  praetextam :  the  toga 
with  a  purple  border.  —  latum 
clavum:  the  purple  stripe  down 
the  front  of  the  tunic.  —  prunae 
vatillum :  a  pan  or  shovel  of  coals, 
for  burning  incense.  The  sever- 
ity of  this  satirical  allusion  seems 
at  first  sight  scarcely  justifiable. 
Horace  was,  in  fact,  only  a  humble 
retainer  of  the  great  men  to  whom 
the  honors  were  paid,  and  he  was 
himself  a  scriba.  But,  like  Thack- 
eray, he  had  a  keen  eye  for  a  snob. 
37.  Mamurrarum  urbe  :  For- 
miae.  Only  one  Mamurra  is 
known  to  us,  a  knight  of  Formiae, 
who  was  praefectus  fabrum 
(chief  of  engineers)  under  Julius 
Caesar,  was  enriched  by  him  and 


'.  5.  38] 


HORATI 


Murena  praebente  domum,  Capitone  culinam. 

Postera  lux  oritur  multo  gratissima  ;  namque 
40      Plotius  et  Varius  Sinuessae  Vergiliusque 

occurrunt,  animae,  qualis  neque  candidiores 

terra  tulit,  neque  quis  me  sit  devinctior  alter. 

O  qui  complexus  et  gaudia  quanta  fuerunt ! 

Nil  ego  contulerim  iucundo  sanus  amico. 
45      Proxima  Campano  ponti  quae  villula  tectum 

praebuit,  et  parochi  quae  debent  ligna  salemque. 

made  an  offensive  display  of  his 
ill-gotten  money.  He  was  at- 
tacked with  especial  bitterness  by 
Catullus  and,  apparently,  on  good 
grounds.  Nothing  is  known  of 
his  family  (the  scholia  describe 
a  later  condition  of  things),  and 
it  seems  likely  that  the  calling  of 
Formiae  by  his  name  and  the  use 
of  the  plural,  as  if  there  were 
many  distinguished  persons  of  the 
family,  are  satirical  touches. 

38.  Murena :  L.  Licinius  Te- 
rentius  Varro  Murena,  brother  of 
Terentia,  the  wife  of  Maecenas. 
Carm.  2,  10  is  addressed  to  him. 
He  was  put  to  death  in  22  B.C.  for 
conspiracy.  —  praebente  domum : 
the  implication  is  that  he  was  not 
himself  occupying  the  villa  at  this 
time. 

40.  Plotius  Tucca  and  L.  Va- 
rius Rufus  were  Vergil's  literary 
executors,  and  Varius  and  Vergil 
were  the  friends  who  had  intro- 
duced Horace  to  Maecenas  (Sat. 
I.  6,  53 ).  Varius  was  very  highly 
esteemed,  perhaps  beyond  his 
merits,  by  his  contemporaries  as  a 


writer  of  epic  and  of  tragedy ;  he 
is  mentioned  by  Horace  more  fre- 
quently than  any  other  of  his  lit- 
erary friends. 

41.  qualis  .  .  .  candidiores:  the 
expression   is   perfectly  logical  — 
'of  which  kind  the  earth  has  borne 
none  fairer  (than  they)  '  —  and  it 
is  used  again  in   Epod.  5,  59  f. ; 
nardo  .  .  .  ,  quale  non  perfedius 
meae  laborarint  manus ;  there  is 
no  similar  idiom  in  English. 

42.  tulit :      brought    forth.  — 
quis :  dative. 

44.  sanus :  'while  I  am  in  my 
senses;  so  Sat.  I,  6,89,  nil  me 
paeniteat  sanum  patris  huius. 

45  f .  quae  villula :  sc.  est. 
This  was  a  public  house,  main- 
tained by  the  government  for  the 
use  of  officials  traveling  on  state 
business.  The  parochi  (Trape'^w) 
furnished  the  necessary  supplies 
(ligna  salemque  are  not  to  be 
taken  quite  literally,  for  Cicero, 
ad  Att.  5,  1 6,  3,  mentions  also 
fodder),  which  were  at  this  time 
designated  by  law ;  hence  quat 
debent. 


90 


SERMONES 


ti.5.53 


Hinc  muli  Capuae  clitellas  tempore  ponunt. 
Lusum.it  Maecenas,  dormitum  ego  Vergiliusque ; 
namque  pila  lippis  inimicum  et  ludere  crudis. 
50      Hinc  nos  Coccei  recipit  plenissima  villa, 

quae  super  est  Caudi  cauponas.     Nunc  mihi  paucis 
Sarmenti  scurrae  pugnam  Messique  Cicirri, 
Musa,  velim  memores,  et  quo  patre  natus  uterque 
47.   Hinc :      i.e.   starting    from      cakes  at  a  gulp,  and  Vibidius  and 


this  point.  —  tempore :  in  good 
season,  so  that  there  was  time  for 
exercise  before  supper. 

49.  lippis :   Horace ;  cf.  vs.  30. 
—  crudis :  Vergil,  of  whom  Dona- 
tus  says,  '  plerumque  a  stomacho 
et  a  faucibus  ac  dolore  capitis  la- 
borabat.' 

50.  plenissima :       well-stocked. 
So  Cicero,   Cat.  Maior,  56,  says 
'  semper  enim  boni  assiduique  do- 
mini  referta  cella  vinaria,  olearia, 
etiam  penaria  est,  villaque  tota  locu- 
ples  est,abundatporco,  haedo,agno, 
gallina,     lacte,     caseo,     melle.' — 
Caudi :    where   the  Romans  were 
defeated  by  the  Samnites  in  321 
B.C. 

51-70.  The  custom  of  inviting 
semi-professional  jesters  to  enliven 
the  conversation  of  the  dinner 
table,  a  custom  which  has  pre- 
vailed more  or  less  in  all  societies, 
is  alluded  to  in  many  Roman 
writers  from  Plautus  down.  The 
jesters  were  of  all  degrees,  from 
the  buffoon  or  the  mere  butt  of 
practical  jokes  to  the  more  refined 
wit  and  story-teller.  Examples  of 
both  kinds  are  mentioned  in  Sat. 
2,  8,  Porcius,  who  could  eat  whole 


Balatro,  hangers-on  of  Maecenas 
and  leaders  of  the  joking,  but  not 
buffoons. 

This  passage  is  the  record  of  a 
contest  of  wits  between  two  such 
parasites.  Sarmentus  is  described 
at  some  length  in  a  scholium  to 
Juvenal,  5,  3,  and  was  evidently  a 
well-known  person ;  he  had  been 
a  slave,  was  perhaps  at  this  time  a 
freedman,  had  become  a  scriba, 
and  was  small  and  somewhat 
effeminate  in  appearance.  He 
represents  the  type  of  scurra,  the 
more  polished  wit.  Messius  Cicir- 
rus  (KiKippos,  a  fighting-cock)  is 
the  clown,  an  Oscan,  large  and 
clumsy,  with  his  face  disfigured  by 
a  scar.  He  is  a  countryman, 
brought  in  for  the  occasion  to  be 
pitted  against  the  city-bred  Sar- 
mentus, who  was  in  the  train  of 
Maecenas,  perhaps  as  a  secretary. 

53-55.  Musa :  in  epic  style.  — 
quo  patre  natus :  as  in  Homer,  be- 
fore two  heroes  engage  in  fight, 
the  genealogy  of  each  is  recited. 
But  in  this  case  the  heroic  de- 
mand (quo  patre  natus)  cannot  be 
met ;  '  of  Messius  the  glorious 
lineage  is  —  Oscan ;  of  the  family 


t,  5.  54j 


HORAT1 


contulerit  lites.     Messi  clarum  genus  Osci ; 

55      Sarmenti  domina  exstat :  ab  his  maioribus  orti 
ad  pugnam  venere.     Prior  Sarmentus  :  '  Equi  te 
esse  feri  similem  dico.'     Ridemus,  et  ipse 
Messius  '  Accipio,'  caput  et  movet.     '  O,  tua  cornu 
ni  foret  exsecto  f rons/  inquit,  '  quid  faceres,  cum 

60      sic  mutilus  minitaris  ? '     At  illi  foeda  cicatrix 
saetosam  laevi  f  rontem  turpaverat  oris. 
Campanum  in  morbum,  in  faciem  permulta  iocatus, 
pastorem  saltaret  uti  Cyclopa  rogabat ; 
nil  illi  larva  aut  tragicis  opus  esse  cothurnis. 

65      Multa  Cicirrus  ad  haec  :  Donasset  iamne  catenam 


of  Sarmentus  there  survives  only 
—  his  owner.'  The  Oscans  were 
regarded  by  the  Romans  with 
special  contempt,  and  a  slave  had, 
legally,  no  family. 

56  f.  Equi  .  .  .  feri :  a  unicorn. 
The  comparison  is  suggested  by 
the  scar  mentioned  below,  60. 
This  is  clearly  a  variation  on  the 
verse  of  Lucilius,  dente  adverso 
eminulo  hie  est  \  rinoceros  (Marx 
117  f.),  'This  is  a  rhinoceros  with 
a  tooth  sticking  out  in  front.' 

58.  Accipio:  <all  right;  so  I 
am,  and  you  will  find  me  danger- 
ous,' with  a  threatening  shake  ot 
the  head. 

60.  sic :  both  with  mutilus  and 
with  minitaris  ;    *  when,  hornless 
as  you  are,  you  threaten  so.'  —  At : 
explanatory,  not  adversative ;  and, 
in  fact. 

61.  laevi:  'on  the  left  side  of 
his  face.'     [But  the  expression  is 
awkward  and  the  comparison  to  a 


unicorn  and,  below,  to  the  Cyclops 
requires  that  the  scar  should  have 
been  in  the  middle ;  the  text  must 
be  regarded  as  quite  doubtful.] 

62.  Campanum    in    morbum  : 
some     disease,     not    understood 
even    by    the     scholiasts,    which 
was  thought  to  be  the  cause  of 
the  scar.     Campanus  contains  the 
same  kind  of  slur  as  Osci,  54. 

63.  saltaret  .  .  Cyclopa :  should 
flay  the  Cyclops  in  a  pantomimic 
dance  ;    accus.  of  the  inner  ob- 
ject. 

64.  larva :   because  he  was  so 
ugly  and  the  scar  would  represent 
the  one  eye  of  the  Cyclops.  —  co- 
thurnis:  because   he  was  so  big 
and  clumsy. 

65  ff .  The  account  is  shortened 
by  giving  the  substance  of  the  re- 
torts of  Cicirrus  without  comment. 
They  turn  upon  the  fact  that  Sar- 
mentus had  been  a  slave  and  upon 
his  small  size  and  effeminate  ap- 


92 


SERMONES 


I'.  5.  78 


ex  voto  Laribus,  quaerebat;  scriba  quod  esset, 
nilo  deterius  dominae  ius  esse  :  rogabat 
denique,  cur  umquam  fugisset,  cui  satis  una 
farris  libra  foret,  gracili  sic  tamque  pusillo. 

/c      Prorsus  iucunde  cenam  producimus  illam. 

Tendimus  hinc  recta  Beneventum,  ubi  sedulus  hospes 
paene  macros  arsit  dum  turdos  versat  in  igni ; 
nam  vaga  per  veterem  dilapso  flamma  culinam 
Volcano  summum  properabat  lambere  tectum. 

75      Convivas  avidos  cenam  servosque  timentis 

turn  rapere,  atque  omnis  restinguere  velle  videres. 
Incipit  ex  illo  montis  Apulia  notos 
ostentare  mihi,  quos  torret  Atabulus,  et  quos 


pearance.  —  ex  voto :  as  gladiators 
at  the  end  of  their  professional 
career  dedicated  their  arms  {Epist. 
i,  I,  4  f.)  or  as  men  who  had 
escaped  from  shipwreck  hung  up 
their  dripping  garments  in  a  tem- 
ple (Carm.  i,  5,  13-16),  so  a  slave 
who  had  escaped  from,  slavery  — 
perhaps  by  running  away  —  might 
dedicate  his  chains  to  the  gods 
who  had  helped  him.  —  scriba: 
the  emphatic  position  shows  what 
the  point  is ;  *  even  though  you 
have  attained  to  the  lofty  position 
of  a  clerk,  still  .  .  .  '  —  una  farris 
libra  :  the  ordinary  ration  was  four 
or  five  pounds  and  such  a  puny 
little  man  might  have  lived  on 
a  quarter  of  his  allowance  and 
bought  his  freedom  with  his  sav- 
ings, instead  of  running  away. 

70.  Prorsus  :  with  iucunde ; 
*  certainly  it  was  a  jolly  supper 
...  So  prorsus  vehementer, 


Cic.  ad  Att.   16,   15,  2;  prorsus 
•valde,  ad  Fam.  6,  20,  2. 

72.  paene  .  .  .  arsit  :  almost 
set  his  house  afire.  So  Verg. 
Aen.  2,  311  f.,  ardet  Vcalegon. 

—  macros  :    with  turdos  and  dum 
with  versat.     It  is  possible  that  the 
confused  order  is  meant  to  repre- 
sent  the   confused   efforts  of  the 
anxious  landlord. 

73-74.   vaga  .  .  .  veterem  .  .  . 
Volcano :    parody  of   the   allitera- 
tion in  the  epic  style  of  Ennius. 

—  dilapso  .  .  .  Volcano :  the  logs 
which  were  piled  together  on  the 
raised  hearth  fell  apart  and  were 
scattered  on  the  floor. 

76.  videres :  '  then  there  was  a 
pretty  spectacle  for  you  to  see, 
of  hungry  guests  and  frightened 
slaves.' 

78.  mihi :  they  were  approach- 
ing the  region  of  Venusia,  where 
Horace  had  passed  his  boyhood, 


93 


79] 


HORATI 


numquam  erepsemus,  nisi  nos  vicina  Trivici 
80      villa  recepisset,  lacrimoso  non  sine  fumo, 

udos  cum  foliis  ramos  urente  camino. 
86      Quattuor  hinc  rapimur  viginti  et  milia  raedis, 
mansuri  oppidulo  quod  versu  dicere  non  est, 
signis  perfacile  est :  venit  vilissima  rerum 
hie  aqua ;  sed  panis  longe  pulcherrimus,  ultra 


and  he  began  to  recognize  well- 
known  landmarks.  —  Atabulus :  a 
name  for  the  sirocco,  peculiar  to 
Apulia  and  recalled  by  Horace  as 
he  approaches  his  old  home.  Gel- 
lius  (2,  22,  25)  calls  it  Horatianus 
ille  Atabulus. 

79.  erepsemus :  erepsissemus  ; 
such  colloquial  forms  are  used 
freely  in  the  Satires,  e.g.,  surrexe 
for  surrexisse,  i,  9,  73.  —  nisi: 
the  expression  is  somewhat  con- 
densed, perhaps  with  humorous 
intention  ;  '  we  should  never  have 
crawled  out,  if  we  hadn't  stopped,' 
meaning  '  we  should  never  have 
had  the  strength  to  crawl  out,  if 
we  had  not  refreshed  ourselves  by 
a  night's  rest.' 

81.  udos:  the  emphatic  word; 
'  because  of  the  dampness  of  the 
fuel.'  —  urente  camino :  so/ 'river -it 
area,  I,  I,  45.  The  caminus  (cf. 
Epist.  I,  u,  19)  was  an  arrange- 
ment, other  than  the  open  hearth, 
for  heating  a  room,  but  the  details 
of  its  construction  are  unknown. 

86.  raedis:  both  raeda  (or 
redd)  and  petorritum  (or  pet  or i- 
tum)  are  Gallic  words  (Quint.  I. 
5,  57),  and  this  fact  accounts  for 


the  variation  in  spelling.  The 
mention  of  carriages  at  this  stage 
of  the  journey  and  the  contrast 
between  rapimur  and  erepsemus 
must  certainly  imply  a  change  in 
the  mode  of  traveling,  from  riding 
to  driving. 

87.  quod  versu  dicere  non  est : 
so  Lucilius  (228  f.,  Marx)  has 
*  servorum  festus  dies  hie,  |  quern 
plane  hexametro  versu  non  dicere 
possis '  of  the  feast  ofiheStglHdrfa, 
and  Ovid  (  ex  Ponto,  4,  12)  jokes 
about  the  impossibility  of  bring- 
ing the  name  of  his  friend  Tutt- 
cdnus  into  elegiac  verse.  The 
name  of  the  town  is  unknown,  in 
spite  of  statements  by  the  scho- 
liasts. 

88  ff.  signis :  by  the  indica- 
tions which  follow,  the  lack  of 
good  water  and  the  excellence  of 
the  bread.  —  venit :  from  veneo  ; 
emphatic  by  position  and  by  con- 
trast with  vilissitna  ;  '  they  ask 
here  for  what  can  elsewhere  be 
had  for  nothing  —  water.'  —  ultra : 
i.e.  the  traveler  who  knows  what 
he  is  about  (callidus')  lays  in  a 
supply  for  the  next  stage  of  the 
journey.  —  soleat :  an  early  long 


94 


SERMONES 


90     callidus  ut  soleat  umeris  portare  viator : 

nam  Canusi  lapidosus,  aquae  non  ditior  urna 
qui  locus  a  forti  Diomede  est  conditus  olim. 
Flentibus  hinc  Varius  discedit  maestus  amicis. 
Inde  Rubos  fessi  pervenimus,  utpote  longum 

95      carpentes  iter  et  factum  corruptius  imbri. 
Postera  tempestas  melior,  via  peior  ad  usque 
Bari  moenia  piscosi ;  dein  Gnatia  lymphis 
iratis  exstructa  dedit  risusque  iocosque, 
dum  flamma  sine  tura  liquescere  limine  sacro 

«oo    persuadere  cupit.     Credat  ludaeus  Apella, 

non  ego ;  namque  deos  didici  securum  agere  aevum, 


quantity  preserved  here,  as  occa- 
sionally elsewhere  in  Horace  and  in 
Vergil  and  frequently  in  Plautus. — 
umeris  portare :  a  general  term, 
for  most  travelers  would  have 
slaves  to  carry  their  provisions. 

91  f.  Canusi :  gen.,  not  loca- 
tive ;  sc.  pants. — lapidosus  -.gritty. 
—  aquae:  gen.  with  ditior ;  so 
dives  artium,  Carm.  4,  8,  5  ;  dives 
opis,  Sat.  i,  2,  74.  — urna  :  abl. 
of  degree  of  difference.  —  The 
narrative  hurries  on  here  through 
uninteresting  scenes  and  events 
and  three  distinct  statements 
('  the  bread  of  Canusium  is  gritty ; 
water  there  is  scarce ;  the  town 
was  founded  by  Diomed ')  are 
condensed  into  a  single  sentence. 
The  intentional  awkwardness 
expresses  the  haste  of  the  story. 

93.  Flentibus . . .  amicis :  '  leav- 
ing his  friends  in  tears ' ;  a  dative 
of  separation.  The  exaggeration 
is  intentionally  humorous. 


96.  tempestas :  weather,  as  fre- 
quently in  early  and  classical  Latin. 

97  f.  piscosi :  Barium  was  on 
the  coast. — dein:  monosyllabic. — 
lymphis  iratis  exstructa:  'built 
under  the  frown  of  the  water 
nymphs,'  i.e.  lacking  in  good 
water. 

99.  The  '  miracle '  was  ex- 
hibited to  the  distinguished 
visitors.  As  described  by  Pliny, 
H.N.  2,  107,  240,  it  was  the  wood 
on  the  altar  which  took  fire  of 
itself. 

100.  Credat    ludaeus    Apella : 
there  were  many  Jews  in  Rome  at 
this   time  and    Horace   had   evi- 
dently some  knowledge  of  their 
beliefs  (Sat.  i,  4,  143  ;  i,  9, 66  f. ; 
perhaps  also  2,  3,  288  ff.),  possibly 
even    of  their  belief  in  this  par- 
ticular kind  of  miracle   (Levit.  9, 
24;  / Kings  18,38). 

101.  securum :     '  Careless   of 
mankind,'   Tennyson,    The  Lotus 


95 


»    $,  102]  HORATI 

nec,  si  quid  miri  faciat  natura,  deos  id 
tristis  ex  alto  caeli  demittere  tecto. 
Brundisium  longae  finis  chartaeque  viaeque  est. 

Eaters.    The  verse  is  a  quotation  is   sufficient   to   explain   all   phe- 

of  Lucretius,  5,  82  —  nam  bene  gut  nomena,  however  strange.  —  tris 

didicere  deos  securum  agere  aevom  tis :      in     their     anger.        Early 

—  and  an  expression  of  Horace's  religions  are,  in  general,  rather  a 

Epicurean  skepticism.  means  of  propitiating  the  wrath  of 

102  f.  natura :  the  working  force  the  gods   than  an  expression  of 

which  in  the  Epicurean  philosophy  gratitude  or  trust. 


The  date  of  this  satire  cannot  be  precisely  fixed,  but  it  was  written 
between  38  and  33  B.C.  The  upper  limit  is  fixed  by  the  allusion  in 
vss.  54  if.  to  Horace's  introduction  to  Maecenas,  which  was  probably 
not  earlier  than  38  B.C.  On  the  other  hand,  the  second  half  of  the 
satire  would  certainly  have  contained  some  allusion  to  the  Sabine 
form,  which  came  into  Horace's  possession  in  33,  if  the  satire  had  been 
written  after  that  date. 

'  Your  high  position,  my  dear  Maecenas,  as  a  man  of  noble  family, 
evidently  does  not  seem  to  you  to  justify  you  in  looking  down  upon 
other  men,  upon  me,  for  instance,  a  freedman's  son.  On  the  contrary, 
your  admission  of  all  freeborn  citizens  to  social  equality  seems  to 
express  your  belief  that  character,  not  birth,  is  the  proper  basis  of  a 
claim  to  public  recognition.  And,  in  fact,  even  the  ordinary  voter, 
prone  as  he  is  to  be  dazzled  by  noble  birth,  sees  this  truth  and  acts 
upon  it.  But  we,  whose  vision  is  clearer,  ought  to  see  still  deeper  and 
to  distinguish  between  social  recognition  and  political  advancement. 
A  political  ambition,  like  that  of  Tillius,  not  improperly  raises  questions 
of  family,  and  of  inherited  fitness  for  public  office.  But,  for  me,  I  have 
no  political  ambition  and  the  office  which  I  once  held  in  the  army  of 
Brutus  came  to  me  by  mere  chance ;  I  will  not  even  take  the  trouble  to 
defend  myself  against  the  criticisms  which  it  excited.  But  my  friend- 
ship with  you  is  no  chance ;  two  sponsors  whom  I  am  proud  to  name, 
Vergil  and  Varius,  introduced  me  to  you  and  after  careful  deliberation 
you  accepted  me  as  a  friend,  judging  me  not  by  my  father's  rank,  but 
by  my  own  character. 

'  And  yet  that  very  character  which  has  won  your  esteem  was  my 
father's  gift  to  me.  He  was  a  poor  man,  a  freedman,  yet  he  gave  me 


SERMONES  [i,  6,  2 

such  an  education  as  a  knight  or  a  senator  might  have  given  to  his 
son,  attending  me  himself  to  guard  me  against  the  dangers  of  the  city, 
not  deterred  by  the  fear  of  educating  me  above  my  station.  I  should 
be  mad  to  wish  that  I  had  had  a  different  father.  I  will  not  even  say, 
as  some  do,  that  I  was  not  responsible  for  my  humble  parentage.  On 
the  contrary,  I  would  not  exchange  my  father  for  any  other,  not  even 
for  one  who  had  sat  in  the  curule  chair  and  worn  the  purple. 

'  For,  after  all,  I  prefer  my  quiet  life.  No  bother  about  money,  no 
formal  calls  to  make,  no  swarm  of  servants,  no  fuss.  I  stroll  about 
town  as  I  please  and  watch  the  sights  of  the  streets ;  I  go  home  to  a 
plain  dinner  and  a  good  night's  sleep,  untroubled  by  the  thought  of 
early  business  engagements  in  the  morning.  I  read  or  write.  I  take  a 
little  exercise,  I  have  a  light  lunch  and  an  afternoon  of  leisure.  That's 
a  great  deal  more  comfortable  than  the  life  of  the  people  who  think 
they  have  a  position  to  maintain.' 

This  satire  belongs  in  subject  and  treatment  with  the  third,  the 
fourth,  and  the  tenth.  It  springs  directly  out  of  the  circumstances  of 
Horace's  life  at  the  time  it  was  written  and  marks  another  step  in  his 
progress  from  the  earlier  years  of  rebellious  obscurity  to  the  assured 
position  of  the  Second  Book.  His  friendship  with  men  of  rank,  his 
acceptance  by  Maecenas,  and,  in  particular,  the  publication  of  the 
account  of  the  journey  to  Brundisium  had  revived  the  old  criticisms 
which  his  position  in  the  army  of  Brutus  had  aroused  and  had  given 
new  grounds  for  suspecting  him  of  social  and  political  ambitions.  The 
satire  is  in  form  a  disclaimer  of  such  ambitions,  while  in  substance  it  is 
a  defence  of  the  friends  who  had  accorded  him  social  recognition  and  a 
very  manly  and  dignified  declaration  of  pride  in  his  father's  wisdom  and 
of  contentment  with  his  own  quiet  life.  " 

Non  quia,  Maecenas,  Lydorum  quicquid  Etruscos 
incoluit  finis,  nemo  generosior  est  te, 

i.    Non:  with  suspendis,  vs.  5,  more  colloquial.  —  Maecenas:  the 

not  with  quid.     The  sentence  is  fact   that  Maecenas   had  publicly 

best   translated    by   changing   its  recognized  Horace  as  a  friend  is 

structure:  'although  no  one.  .  .  ,  the  natural  starting  point  of  the 

and  although  your  ancestors  .  .  .  ,  argument. — Lydorum:  there  was 

you  do  not,  for  that  reason,  treat  a  tradition  that  the  Etruscan  no- 

wiih  contempt  .  .  .  '  —  quia:  not  bility  was  descended  from  Lydian 

different  in  sense  from  quod,  vs.  3,  colonists   (Herod.    I,  94),  as  the 

though   quia   is,   in   general,   the  Roman    aristocracy    claimed    de- 

HOK.  SAT.  —  7  97 


i.  6,  3] 


HORATI 


nec  quod  avus  tibi  maternus  fuit  atque  paternus, 

olim  qui  magnis  legionibus  imperitarent, 

ut  plerique  solent,  naso  suspendis  adunco 

ignotos,  ut  me  libertino  patre  natum. 

Cum  referre  negas  quali  sit  quisque  parente 

natus,  dum  ingenuus,  persuades  hoc  tibi  vere, 

ante  potestatem  Tulli  atque  ignobile  regnum 


scent  from  Troy,  and  as  many 
Italian  cities  were  supposed  to 
have  been  founded  by  Greek 
heroes;  cf.  Sat.  I,  5,  92.  The 
gen.  plur.  is  a  partitive  gen.  with 
quicquid  (Catull.  3,  2,  quantum 
est  hominum  venustiorum  ;  31,  14, 
quicquid  est  domi  cachinnoruni), 
but  by  its  position  it  is  made  to 
serve  also  as  a  gen.  for  nemo. 

2.  generosior :  more  nobly  born. 
There  are  various  general  refer- 
ences, like  Cann.  i,  i,  i,  Maece- 
nas, atavts  edite  regibus,  to  the 
nobility  of  the  Cilnii,  but  it  does 
not  appear  that  the  family  had 
taken  a  conspicuous  place  in 
Roman  public  life. 

3-4.  avus  maternus  .  .  .  :  the 
reference  is  general,  as  the  subjv. 
imperitarent  shows,  though  the 
use  of  maternus  may  be  an  allu- 
sion to  the  Etruscan  custom  of 
reckoning  descent  through  the 
mother's  side.  —  legionibus  :  also 
general ;  great  armies. 

5.  naso  suspendis  adunco  :  such 
phrases  as  this,  which  express  an 
emotion  by  describing  the  instinc- 
tive distortion  of  the  features  which 
accompanies  it,  are  common  in 
Latin,  and  are  found  even  in  seri- 


98 


ous  passages,  as  here;  they  are 
doubtless  colloquial  in  origin,  but 
they  are  much  less  undignified 
than  the  corresponding  English 
phrases  like  '  turn  up  your  nose  at.' 

6.  ignotos :     men    of    humble 
birth.      Cf.    vss.    24,   36,   below; 
notits  and  nobilis  are  only  partially 
differentiated  in  meaning. 

7.  Cum  referre  negas :  in  refus- 
ing to  consider;    the   explicative 
use  of  cum ;  '  your  refusal  to  con- 
sider ...  is,  in  reality,  a  declara- 
tion of  your  belief  that  .  .  .' 

8.  ingenuus :  freeborn.     Mae- 
cenas, like  Augustus  (Sueton.  Aug. 
74),  admitted   to    social    equality 
any  man  who  was  born  in  free- 
dom,  but   did    not    extend    such 
recognition    to    freedmen    (liber- 
tini).      Horace  is  here   dwelling 
upon  the  liberality  of  the  admis- 
sion ;    the  exclusion  of  freedmen 
seemed  to  him,  as,  indeed,  it  well 
might,  a  natural  limitation,  to  be 
mentioned     only    incidentally.  — 
persuades  .  .  .  tibi :  you  express 
your  conviction. 

9-17.  In  this  somewhat  diffi- 
cult passage  two  distinct  ideas  are 
fused  into  one  statement,  and  a 
third  is  appended  which  strictly 


SERMONES 


i>  6,  15 


multos  saepe  viros  nullis  maioribus  ortos 
et  vixisse  probos,  amplis  et  honoribus  auctos ; 
contra  Laevinum,  Valeri  genus,  unde  superbus 
Tarquinius  regno  pulsus  fugit,  unius  assis 
non  umquam  pretio  pluris  licuisse,  notante 
iudice,  quo  nosti,  populo,  qui  stultus  honores 


15 

belongs  with  the  next  sentence : 
( i )  '  Your  belief  is  that  men  of 
humble  birth  often  deserve  honor, 
and  men  of  noble  birth  sometimes 
deserve  to  be  obscure ' ;  (2)  '  this 
principle  has  often  been  illustrated 
in  Roman  history — plebeians  have 
been  elected  to  the  consulship,  and 
patricians  have  been  nobodies ' ; 
(3)  'if  the  common  voter  can 
judge  so  correctly,  then  you  and 
I  should  certainly  not  be  misled 
by  the  accident  of  birth.'  If 
Horace  had  been  trying  to  use 
the  forms  of  precise  reasoning, 
only  the  first  of  these  statements 
would  have  been  subordinated  to 
persuades  hoc  tibi  vere ;  the  sec- 
ond would  have  been  put  into 
an  independent  sentence,  and  the 
third  would  have  been  connected 
with  vss.  17-18,  to  which  it  is  a 
kind  of  protasis. 

9.  ante  .  .  .  regnum :  i.e.  even 
before  the  reign  of  Servius  Tullius, 
who  was  traditionally  held  to  be 
the  son  of  a  slave  woman,  and 
before  the  Servian  reform  of  the 
constitution,  which  was  regarded 
as  the  beginning  of  democracy  in 
Rome. 

n.  et  .  .  .  probos  ...  et  ... 
auctos :  predicate  with  vixisse. 


The  sentence  is  paratactic ;  trans- 
late, '  because  they  lived  upright 
lives,  were  honored  with  high 
offices.' 

12.  Laevinum :  unknown.  The 
statement  of  the  scholiast  adds 
nothing  to  what  is  implied  in  the 
context.  —  Valeri  genus:  of  the 
Valerian  gens,  one  of  the  great 
Roman  families.  —  unde  :  —  a  quo, 
to  be  taken  with  pulsus.  M.  Vale- 
rius Poplicola  aided  Brutus  in  ex- 
pelling Tarquinius  Superbus,  and 
was  one  of  the  consuls  of  the  first 
year. 

14.  licuisse:  sold  for,  i.e.  was 
worth;  from  liceo,  —  pluris:  gen. 
of  indefinite  value.  —  pretio :  abl. 
after  the  comparative,  with  unius 
assis  depending  upon  it. 

14  f .    notante  iudice :  abl.  abso- 
lute ;  iudice  is  defined  by  quo  nosti 
(by  attraction  from   quern  nosti) 
and    by    the    appositive,  populo. 
The  defeat  at  the  polls  is  like  the 
judgment  of  the  censors ;    either 
excludes  from  the  Senate. 

15  ff.    The  indie,  in  this  clause 
emphasizes   its  detachment   from 
the     indirect     discourse.  —  famae 
servit :    i.e.  the  judgment  of  the 
common  people  is,  too  often,  taken 
captive    by    family    reputation. — 


99 


I,  6,  1 6] 


HORATI 


saepe  dat  indignis  et  famae  servit  ineptus, 

qui  stupet  in  titulis  et  imaginibus.     Quid  oportet 

nos  facere,  a  volgo  longe  longeque  remotos  ? 

Namque  esto  populus  Laevino  mallet  honorem 

quam  Decio  mandare  novo,  censorque  moveret 

Appius,  ingenuo  si  non  essem  patre  natus  : 

vel  merito,  quoniam  in  propria  non  pelle  quiessem. 

Sed  fulgente  trahit  constrictos  Gloria  curru 
non  minus  ignotos  generosis.     Quo  tibi,  Tilli, 


imaginibus :  the  waxen  masks  of 
ancestors  who  had  held  curule 
office.  —  titulis:  the  inscription 
under  each  mask  enumerating  the 
offices  held  by  the  original.  The 
masks  were  hung  in  the  atrium, 
and  the  possession  of  them  indi- 
cated that  the  family  was  nobilis. 

17-22.  '  If  the  people,  prone  as 
they  are  to  be  dazzled  by  appear- 
ances, can.  sometimes  see  below 
the  surface,  then  we,  the  intelligent 
classes,  should  be  able  to  see  still 
more  deeply  into  the  truth.  For, 
whether  the  machinery  of  govern- 
ment favors  the  patrician  or  the 
plebeian,  it  is  certainly  true  that, 
for  such  a  man  as  I  am,  political 
ambition  is  folly.  — esto :  used  fre- 
quently by  Horace  (Sat.  2,  I,  83; 
2,  2,  30)  to  express  a  concession ; 
here,  in  parataxis  with  mallet,  it 
becomes  almost  a  concessive  con- 
junction, as  in  the  English, 
'granted  the  people  might  prefer 
.  .  .  ,  yet  .  .  .'  —  Decio  .  .  .  novo : 
P.  Decius  Mus,  a  plebeian  and 
novus  homo,  the  first  of  his  family 
to  hold  a  curule  office.  He  de- 


voted himself  to  death  in  order  to 
secure  victory  in  the  battle  of  Mt. 
Vesuvius  in  340  B.C.,  and  is  fre- 
quently referred  to  as  a  type  of 
heroic  patriotism.  —  censor  .  .  . 
Appius  :  Appius  Claudius  Pulcher, 
the  brother  of  Clodius,  censor  in 
50  B.C.  He  scrutinized  the  sena- 
torial lists  with  great  severity,  ex- 
cluding many  nobles  and  all  sons 
of  freedmen. 

22.  vel  merito :  and  rightly, 
too ;  i.e.  '  I  should  deserve  it  for 
being  such  a  fool  as  to  be  tempted 
by  political  ambition.'  —  propria 
.  .  .  pelle :  an  allusion  to  Aesop's 
fable  of  the  Ass  in  the  Lion's 
Skin;  cf.  Sat.  2,  3,  314-320;  2, 

5>56- 

23  f .    '  But   most   men   do  not 
see  this  deeper  truth ;  Ambition 
drags  them  after  her,  chained  to 
her  chariot.'     The  same  figure  is 
used  in  Epist.  2,  i,  177,  ventoso 
gloria     curru.  —  ignotos  :  =  igno- 
biles,  as  in  vs.  6. 

24  f .    Quo   tibi :    regularly   fol- 
lowed by  an  infin.,  as  here ;  lit., 
'  to  what  end  is  it  for  you  to  ...  ? ' 


IOO 


SERMONfcS 


i.  6,  37 


25      surriere  depositum  clavum  fierique  tribune? 
Invidia  adcrevit,  private  quae  minor  asset. 
Nam  ut  quisque  insanus  nigris  medium  impediit  crus 
pellibus,  et  latum  demisit  pectore  clavum, 
audit  continue  '  Quis  homo  hie?'  et  'quo  patre  natus?' 

30      Vt,  si  qui  aegrotet  quo  morbo  Barrus  haberi 
et  cupiat  formosus,  eat  quacumque,  puellis 
iniciatcuram  quaerendi  singula,  quali 
sit  facie,  sura,  quali  pede,  dente,  capillo  ; 
sic  qui  promittit  civis,  urbem  sibi  curae, 

35      imperium  fore  et  Italiam,  delubra  deorura, 

quo  patre  sit  natus,  num  ignota  matre  inhonestus, 
omnis  mortalis  curare  et  quaerere  cogit. 


what  good  does  it  do  you  .  .  .  f  — 
Tilli :  he  had  had  the  latus  davits, 
the  broad  purple  stripe  which  was 
worn  by  senators  on  the  tunic,  had 
for  some  reason  lost  it  (deposi- 
tutn),  and  was  now  proposing  to 
win  it  again  (sumere)  by  being 
elected  tribunus  plebis  as  a  first 
step  toward  a  curule  office.  To 
these  inferences  from  the  text  the 
scholiast  (recepit  post  Caesarum 
occisum ;  nat/i  pulsus  ante  senatu 
fuerat)  adds  little.  The  reference 
may  be  to  a  brother  of  L.  Tillius 
Cimber.  —  tribune  :  dat. ;  cf.  I, 
I,  19. 

27  f .  nigris  .  .  .  pellibus  :  sena- 
tors wore  a  shoe  which  was  tied 
by  four  black  leather  bands  wound 
crosswise  about  the  ankle  and  up 
the  calf  (tnedium  crus). 

29.  continue  :  immediately ;  cor- 
responding to  ut,  as  soon  as. 


30  f.  aegrotet,  morbo :  figura- 
tive, as  in  Sat.  2,  3,  306  f.,  quo  me 
aegrotare  putes  animi  vitio  f  The 
following  clause,  et  cupiat,  explains 
the  nature  of  the  disease.  —  Bar- 
rus :  the  name  occurs  again  in 
Sat.  I,  7,  8,  but  identification  with 
any  known  person  is  uncertain. — 
haberi :  depends  on  cupiat. 

32.  iniciat :  i.e.  his  evident  be- 
lief that  he  is  handsome  leads  the 
girls  to  consider  his  features  in 
detail  (singula}  to  see  whether  he 
really  is  all  that  he  claims  to  be. 

34  f.  The  promises  of  the  can- 
didate are  intentionally  exagger- 
ated. No  single  official  had  so 
wide  a  range  of  duties. 

36.  ignota,    inhonestus :     with 
reference  to  birth,    as    elsewhere 
in  this  satire,  vss.  6,  24,  96. 

37.  curare,  quaerere :  repeating 
curani  quaerendi,  32.     The  bit  of 


101 


I,  6,  38] 


HORATI 


'  Tune,  Syri,  Damae,  aut  Dionysi  filius,  audes 
deicere  e  saxo  civis  aut  tradere  Cad  mo  ? ' 
40      'At  Novius  collega  gradu  post  me  sedet  uno ; 

namque  est  ille,  pater  quod  erat  meus.'   '  Hoc  tibi  Paulus 
et  Messalla  videris  ?     At  hie,  si  plostra  ducenta 
concurrantque  foro  tria  funera  magna,  sonabit 
eornua  quod  vincatque  tubas  ;  saltern  tenet  hoc  nos. 


dialogue   which   follows    expands 
the  idea  and  makes  it  vivid. 

38.  These  are  ordinary  foreign 
slave  names ;  Syrus  is  used  in  the 
plays  of  Terence  and   Dama  oc- 
curs in  Sat.  2,  5,  18. 

39.  deicere :  in  three  syllables. 
—  e  saxo :  from  the  Tarpeian  Rock. 
This  old  form  of  punishment  was 
carried  into  execution  by  the  trib- 
unes, but  it    had  fallen  into  dis- 
use except  as  a  figure  of  speech 
for  an  extreme   penalty ;   cf.  Cic. 
ad  Att.  14,  15,  I.  —  Cadmo  :   Cad- 
mus carnifex  illo  tempore  fuisse 
dicitur.     Schol. 

40  f.  Novius :  this  name  is  se- 
lected to  suggest  a  derivation  from 
novus,  like  Thackeray's  Newcome 
or  Henry  James's  Newman. — 
gradu  .  .  .  uno :  not  literally,  for 
there  was  no  assignment  of  special 
seats  to  freedmen  ;  but  figuratively, 
with  an  allusion  to  the  law  of 
Otho,  67  B.C.,  assigning  to  the 
Knights  fourteen  rows  of  seats 
behind  the  senators.  The  law 
had  made  much  talk  and  the  dis- 
tinction had  passed  into  a  kind 
of  proverb.  —  est  ille,  .  .  .  meus : 
i.e.  'he  is  himself  a  freedman, 


while  I  am  the  son  of  a  freed- 
man.' 

41  f.  Hoc  :  abl.,  for  this  reason 
as  in  vs.  52,  below.  —  Paulus  et 
Messalla :  the  cognornina  of  two 
of  the  most  distinguished  noble 
families  in  Rome.  The  absurdity 
of  the  claim  is  heightened  by  the 
use  of  et,  as  if  the  man  could  sup- 
pose himself  to  be  both  at  once. 

42-44.  hie  :  =  Novius  collega. 
'  Your  claim  to  superiority  is  based 
upon  an  advantage  so  petty  that  it 
is  more  than  counterbalanced  by 
his  having  a  big  voice.1  —  plostra  : 
the  plebian  form  of  plaustra  (cf. 
Claudius  and  Clodiits),  employed 
here  because  the  argument  repre- 
sents the  view  of  the  common 
people  (saltern  tenet  hoc  nos}.— 
magna:  with  funera.  [Neither 
Sat.  I,  4,  44,  os  magna  sonaturutn, 
nor  Juv.  7,  108,  ipsi  magna  sonant, 
justifies  the  taking  of  magna 
sonare  as  a  standing  phrase,  to 
shout  loudly.  In  neither  passage 
is  the  plural  force  quite  lost  and 
the  quality  designated  is  lofti- 
ness of  style,  not  mere  loud- 
ness  of  voice.]  —  quod  :  the  ante- 
cedent is  the  internal  object  of 


T02 


SERMONES 


[i,  6,  51 


45          Nunc  ad  me  redeo  libertino  patre  natum, 
quern  rodunt  omnes  libertino  patre  natum, 
nunc,  quia  sim  tibi,  Maecenas,  convictor,  at  olim, 
quod  mihi  pareret  legio  Rom  ana  tribune. 
Dissimile  hoc  illi  est ;  quia  non,  ut  forsit  honorem 

50      iure  mihi  invideat  quivis,  ita  te  quoque  amicum, 
praesertim  cautum  dignos  assumere,  prava 


sonabit. que  :    connecting    cor- 

nua  and  tubas ;  cf.  Sat.  i,  4,  17. 
—  This  incidental  picture  of  the 
Roman  Forum,  though  it  is  inten- 
tionally exaggerated,  is  in  har- 
mony with  what  Juvenal  says  in 
his  third  satire  of  the  dangerously 
crowded  Roman  streets.  The 
Forum  was  the  official  center  of 
all  political  and  public  life,  the 
place  where  the  funeral  proces- 
sions of  great  men,  with  their 
horns  and  trumpets,  paused  to 
listen  to  the  laudatio,  and  it  was 
at  the  same  time  the  principal  busi- 
ness center  of  the  city.  At  this 
period  great  public  works  also  were 
under  construction,  which  neces- 
sitated the  hauling  of  blocks  of 
stone  in  heavy  wagons. 

45.  Nunc  ad  me  redeo :  i.e.  to 
vs.  6,  as  the  repetition  here  of 
the  last  words  of  that  line  shows. 
The  intervening  verses  are  not 
altogether  a  digression  ;  they  meet 
the  suspicion  that  Horace  was  am- 
bitious of  political  influence,  and 
thus  enable  him  to  pass  lightly 
over  that  criticism  (vss.  48-50) 
and  to  come  to  the  main  theme 
of  the  satire,  the  dignity  and  com- 
fort of  a  quiet  life. 


47!  sim,  pareret:  subjv.,  giv- 
ing the  reasons  of  the  critics  as 
expressed  by  themselves.  —  con- 
victor:  cf.Sat.  r,  4,  95,  convictor e 
.  .  .  amicoque.  —  tribuno :  sc.  mili- 
tum.  This  curious  episode  in  his 
life  is  briefly  mentioned  in  the 
Vita  Horati  of  Suetonius :  hello 
Philippensi  excitus  a  M.  Bruto 
imperatore  tribunus  militum  me- 
rutt. 

49.  honorem :    office,  as  in  the 
phrase  cursus  honorum,  and  often. 

50.  iure :    it   is,   however,   un- 
likely that  the  office  was  given  to 
him  without  reason.     Probably  he 
had    shown,  even  in  his  student 
years  at  Athens,  those  qualities  of 
sanity  and  good  judgment  which 
made  him  in  later  life  the  valued 
friend  of  men  of  affairs.  —  te  :  obj . 
of  invideat. 

51  f.  cautum  dignos  assumere  : 
the  friends  whom  Maecenas  had 
already  gathered  about  him  were 
men  of  high  standing  and  charac- 
ter, and,  especially,  men  interested 
in  literature  rather  than  in  politics. 
Admission  to  this  circle  was,  of 
itself,  evidence  that  Horace  was 
not  cherishing  a  political  ambi- 
tion. —  prava  ambitione  procul : 


103 


It  6,  52] 


HORATI 


ambitione  procul.     Felicem  dicere  non  hoc 
me  possim,  casu  quod  te  sortitus  amicum ; 
nulla  etenim  mihi  te  fors  obtulit:  optimus  olim 
55      Vergilius,  post  hunc  Varius  dixere  quid  essem. 
Vt  veni  coram,  singultim  pauca  locutus 
(infans  namque  pudor  prohibebat  plura  profari), 
non  ego  me  claro  natum  patre,  non  ego  circum 
me  Satureiano  vectari  rura  caballo, 


men  free  from  distorted  ambition  ; 
an  amplification  of  dignos.  The 
expression  is  lacking  in  clearness, 
but  cf.  Carm.  4,  I,  ^.-6,desine  .  .  . 
circa  lustra  decent  flectere,  a  man 
of  ten  lustra.  The  word  inam- 
bitiosus,  which  is  used  once  by 
Ovid,  would  not  have  expressed 
the  thought,  especially  the  effect 
of  prava,  and,  in  the  lack  of  an 
article  or  a  present  participle  of 
esse,  some  such  periphrasis  as  this 
is  necessary. 

52-54.  Felicem:  the  gossip 
which  attributed  the  friendship 
of  Maecenas  to  mere  chance  (cf. 
Sat.  2,  6,  49,  '  Fprtunae  filiusj 
omnes)  is  emphatically  denied  by 
the  position  oifelicem  and  by  casu, 
sortitus,  fors.  '  My  acceptance  by 
you  is  not  due  at  all  to  luck,  but  to 
the  kindness  of  my  friends  and  to 
your  deliberate  choice.' 

54  f .  optimus  :  cf.  Candida 
anima,  Sat.  I,  5,42;  animae  di- 
midium  meae,  Carm.  I,  3,  8 ;  pius, 
Carm.  I,  24,  n.  These  terms  of 
respect  and  admiration  are  quite 
in  accord  with  the  account  of  Ver- 
gil's life  and  character  in  the  Vita 


of  Donatus.  —  olim :  some  /////•• 
ago;  but  the  contrast  with  /./.»/ 
hunc  (cf.  olim  .  .  .  max)  gives 
it  a  meaning  like  first. 

57.  infans:  in  the  original 
sense,  speechless,  i.e.  '  which  made 
me  tongue-tied.'  The  embar- 
rassment is  further  indicated  Dy 
the  alliteration  p-udor  p-rohibeoat 
p-lura  p-rofari. 

58  ff.  non  ego  .  .  .  narro : 
Horace's  birth  and  circumstances 
were,  of  course,  known  to  Maece- 
nas, and  his  character  had  already 
been  described  by  his  friends 
(dixere  quid  essem).  This  sen- 
tence, therefore,  does  not  mean 
that  he  did  not  attempt  to  deceive 
Maecenas,  —  which  would  have 
been  absurd,  —  but  that  he  spoke 
of  himself  frankly,  with  the  mod- 
esty which  befitted  the  son  of  a 
freedman  and  a  poor  man,  and 
with  a  recognition  of  his  own 
limitations  of  character  (quod 
erant) .  —  Satureiano :  =  Taren- 
tino  ('  quia  Satureia  dicta  est  Tar- 
entina  civitas.'  Schol.) ;  the 
neighborhood  of  Tarentum  was  a 
particularly  pleasant  part  of  Italy 


104 


SER MONKS 


73 


60      sed,  quod  eram,  narro.     Respondes,  ut  tuus  est  mos, 
pauca ;  abeo,  et  revocas  nono  post  mense  iubesque 
esse  in  amicorum  numero.     Magnum  hoc  ego  duco, 
quod  placui  tibi,  qui  turpi  secernis  honestum, 
non  patre  praeclaro,  sed  vita  et  pectore  puro. 

65          Atqui  si  vitiis  mediocribus  ac  mea  paucis 
mendosa  est  natura,  alioqui  recta,  —  velut  si 
egregio  inspersos  reprehendas  corpore  naevos, — 
si  neque  avaritiam  neque  sordes  nee  mala  lustra 
obiciet  vere  quisquam  mihi,  purus  et  insons 

70      (ut  me  collaudem)  si  et  vivo  carus  amicis, 

causa  fuit  pater  his,  qui,  macro  pauper  agello, 
noluit  in  Flavi  ludum  me  mittere,  magni 
quo  pueri  magnis  e  centurionibus  orti, 


(cf.  Carm.  2,  6,  gff.)  and  was 
occupied  by  large  estates  (rura). 
—  caballo :  the  low  Latin  word 
(for  equus},  from  which  the  Ro- 
mance words  cavallo,  cheval,  are 
derived. 

63.  turpi  secernis  honestum :  cf. 
honestum  as  a  philosophical  term, 
Sat.  i,  3,  42,  and  iusto  secernere 
iniquum,  Sat.  I,  3,  1 13.  The  adj. 
is  in  all  these  cases  neuter  and 
general ;  '  you  who  distinguish 
worth  from  unworthiness,  not  by 
the  position  of  one's  father,  but 
by  his  own  uprightness  of  char- 
acter.' 

65  ff.  'And  yet  that  very  up- 
rightness of  life  and  character, 
upon  which  my  claim  is  based, 
is  my  father's  legacy  to  me ;  it  is 
to  his  training  that  I  owe  all  that 
I  am.'  —  mediocribus,  paucis : 


these  express  the  modesty  which 
is  implied  in  quod  eram,  vs.  60 ; 
cf.  also  I,  4,  139. 

67.  reprehendas :    strictly,    the 
comparison  would  be  '  which  are 
merely   like  slight  defects    in   an 
otherwise  handsome  person,'  but 
the  idea  of  reprehendas  expands 
the  suggestion  implied  in  mendosa ; 
'  spotted  by  few  faults,  no  more  to 
be    made    a    matter    of    censure 
than  .  .  .' 

68.  sordes  :  low  tastes  and  hab- 
its. —  mala  lustra  :  haunts  of  vice. 

69  f.  The  order  is  si  purus  et 
insons  et  carus  amicis  vivo. 

72  f.  Flavi :  the  schoolmaster 
in  Venusia.  —  magni,  magnis  :  the 
families  of  veteran  soldiers,  to 
whom  land  had  been  assigned 
near  Venusia,  constituted  a  local 
aristocracy. 


105 


1.  6,  74] 


HO  R  ATI 


laevo  suspensi  loculos  tabulamque  lacerto, 
75      ibant  octonos  referentes  Idibus  aeris, 

sed  puerum  est  ausus  Romam  portare,  docendum 

artis  quas  doceat  quivis  eques  atque  senator 
•    semet  prognatos.    Vestem  servosque  sequentis, 

in  magno  ut  populo,  si  qui  vidisset,  avita 
80      ex  re  praeberi  sumptus  mihi  crederet  illos. 


74.  loculos,        tabulam :        the 
'  Greek '  accus.  with  passive  verb, 
like  inutile  ferrum  cingitur,  Aen. 
2,  510  f.     loculi  (in  the  plur.  only, 
in    this    sense),   satchel',    tabula, 
slate  made  of  wood  and  covered 
with  wax. 

75.  The  general  sense  is  clear ; 
the    boys    carried    their    tuition 
money   to   the  school  at   regular 
times.     But  the  text  is  uncertain 
and  the  customs  alluded  to  are 
not    clearly    known.       Translate 
'  carrying      their      eight      asses 
(nutHHtos    to     be    supplied)    of 
money  on  the  monthly  pay-day.' 

The  amount  would  be  small 
(ten  or  twelve  cents)  and  the 
petty  details  —  the  limited  curric- 
ulum, the  carrying  of  slates  and 
satchels  by  the  children,  the 
promptness  in  paying  the  tuition 
—  are  set  in  ironical  contrast  with 
the  pretensions  of  the  village 
magnates. 

76.  est  ausus  :  a  very  pleasant 
recognition   of   the   courage   and 
independence  shown  by  his  father. 

77.  artis :   the   higher  studies, 
which  were  not  taught  at  Venusia ; 
the  study  of  early  Latin  poetry  is 


alluded  to  in  Epist.  2,  i,  69  f.  and 
the  reading  of  the  Iliad  in  Epist, 
2,  2,  41  f. 

79-80.  in  magno  ut  populo : 
in  the  midst  of  the  crowd.  [This 
is  ut  restrictive.  Ordinarily  it 
restricts  an  adj.,  as  in  the  familiar 
passage  in  Cic.  Cato  Maior,  12, 
multae  etiam,  ut  in  homine  Ro- 
mano, littercB ;  so  in  Cic.  Brit. 
1 02,  scriptor  fuit,  ut  temporibus 
illis,  lucidentus,  and  in  the  pas- 
sages quoted  by  Schiitz.  Here  it 
restricts  vidisset,  which  is  not 
simply  had  seen,  but  had  noticed; 
this  use  is  perfectly  supported  by 
two  passages  quoted  by  Orelli  from 
Ovid,  Trist.  I,  I,  17  f.,  si  gut's, 
ut  in  populo,  nostri  non  immemor 
.  .  .  erit,  and  ex Ponto,  4,  5,  1 1,  st 
gut's,  ut  in  populo,  qui  sitis  et 
unde,  requiret^\  —  This  passage 
does  not  mean  that  Horace's  father 
encouraged  him  in  an  unsuitable 
display ;  the  context  forbids  that 
understanding.  The  lines  con- 
tinue the  thought  of  76  ff. ;  as  the 
father's  foresight  led  him  to  give 
his  son  the  best  possible  educa- 
tion, so  it  led  him  also  to  pro- 
vide proper  dress  and  attendance. 


1 06 


SERMONES 


[i,  6,  91 


Ipse  mihi  custos  incorruptissimus  omnis 

circum  doctores  aderat.     Quid  multa  ?     Pudicum, 

qui  primus  virtutis  honos,  servavit  ab  omni 

non  solum  facto,  verum  opprobrio'quoque  turpi ; 

85    nee  timuit  sibi  ne  vitio  quis  verteret,  olim 
si  praeco  parvas  aut,  ut  fuit  ipse,  coactor 
mercedes  sequerer ;  neque  ego  essem  questus;  at  hoc 

nunc 

laus  illi  debetur  et  a  me  gratia  maior. 
Nil  me  paeniteat  sanum  patris  huius,  eoque 

90    non,  ut  magna  dolo  factum  negat  esse  suo  pars, 
quod  non  ingenues  habeat  clarosque  parentes, 

dinate  official  in  the  collecting  of 
taxes)  or,  according  to  some  Mss., 
auctionum  coactor,  a  collector  of 
money  at  auctions.  The  latter  is 
consistent  with  praeco,  an  auc- 
tioneer, and  with  parvas  mer- 
cedes. Either  was  a  respectable 
and  useful  business,  but  one 
which  did  not  require  much  edu- 
cation. 

87.  hoc :  on  this  account,  as  in 
41,  52.  —  nunc:  'as  things  have 
turned  out.' 

89.  Cf.  i,  5,  44,  nil  ego  contu- 
lerim  iucundo  sanus  amico. 
—  huius :  qualitative ;  such  a 
father. 

90  ff.  ut  .  .  .  negat  .  .  .,  sic 
.  .  .  defendam :  a  condensed  form 
of  comparison  ;  '  I  will  not  defend 
myself  as  many  do  by  saying  that 
it  wasn't  my  fault.'  —  dolo :  a  legal 
term,  in  full  dolus  malus.  Techni- 
cal  definitions  are  quoted  in  the 
lexicon. 


81.  custos:  i.e.  as  pae 
the    slave    who     accompanied    a 
properly    cared-for    boy    in     the 
streets.  —  incorruptissimus :    who 
could  not  be  bribed. 

82  ff.  'In  short,  he  kept  me 
clean  —  and  that  is  beginning  and 
foundation  of  manliness  —  not 
only  from  vice  itself,  but  also  from 
the  touch  of  scandal.' 

85.  nee     timuit:      the      same 
thought  as  that  in  est  ausus,  vs. 
76.      He    risked    the    possibility 
that   he   might   sometime   be   re- 
proached  with    having    educated 
his   son  above    the  son's   actual 
station    in    life.  —  vitio    verteret : 
a     standing     phrase  ;      (  should 
consider    it     an     error     on     his 
part,'   '  should    reproach    him.'  — 
olim :    of  the  future,  as  not  infre- 
quently. 

86.  coactor:    the  Vita   of  Sue- 
tonius says   that   Horace's  father 
was  exactionum  coactor  (a  subor- 


107 


I,  6,  92] 


HORATI 


sic  me  defenrlam.     Longe  mea  discrepat  istls 
et  vox  et  ratio :  nam  si  natura  iuberet 
a  certis  annis  aevum  remeare  peractum, 
95    atque  alios  legere  ad  fastum  quoscumque  parentes 
optaret  sibi  quisque,  meis  contentus,  honestos 
fascibus  et  sellis  nollem  mihi  sumere,  demens 
iudicio  volgi,  sanus  fortasse  tuo,  quod 
nollem  onus  baud  umquam  solitus  portare  molestum. 

100     Nam  mihi  continue  maior  quaerenda  foret  res, 
atque  salutandi  plures ;  ducendus  et  unus 
et  comes  alter,  uti  ne  solus  rusve  peregreve 
exirem;  plures  calones  atque  caballi 
pascendi,  ducenda  petorrita.     Nunc  mihi  curto 

105    ire  licet  mulo  vel  si  libet  usque  Tarentum, 


92  ff.  istis :  dat.  masculine,  re- 
ferring to  magna  pars,  with  some 
suggestion  of  contempt.  —  et  vox 
et  ratio :  both  my  way  of  speaking 
and  my  way  of  thinking.  —  a  certis 
annis :  i.e.  if  there  were  some 
natural  law  which  obliged  all  men, 
upon  reaching  a  certain  fixed  age, 
say  twenty-one,  to  go  back  and 
start  life  again,  with  a  free  choice 
as  to  their  parentage.  The  apod- 
osis  is  nollem,  97. 

96.  honestos:  honored;  cf.  36; 
not  as  in  vs.  63. 

97.  fascibus    et    sellis:     with 
honestos]    the   insignia  of  curule 
office. 

98.  iudicio  .  .  .tuo:  the  judg- 
ment referred  to  in  the  beginning 
of  this  satire,  but  with  a  reference 
also  to  the  unwillingness  of  Mae- 
cenas   to    hold    office ;    '  hoc   ad 


Maecenatem  recte  dicitur,  qui,  ab- 
horrens  senatoriam  dignitatem, 
in  equestris  ordinis  gradu  se  con- 
tinuit.'  Schol. 

101.  salutandi  plures  :  the  bur- 
den of  making  and  receiving  the 
formal  morning  calls  became  very- 
oppressive  and  is  frequently  al- 
luded to  by  later  writers.  — 
ducendus  et :  for  et  ducendus. 
The  social  proprieties  required 
that  a  man  of  rank  should  take 
with  him  on  a  journey  a  retinue  of 
servants  and  friends,  as  Maecenas 
did  on  the  journey  to  Brundisium. 

104.  petorrita :  a  Gallic  name 
for  a  four-wheeled  traveling  wagon  ; 
cf.  Sat.  I,  5,  86  n.  —  Nunc:  cf. 
vs.  87.  —  curto:  apparently  in  a 
general  sense,  like  curta  res, 
Carm.  3,  24,  64 ;  humble,  plain, 
little. 


108 


SERMONES 


[i,  6,  114 


mantica  cui  lumbos  onere  ulceret  atque  eques  armos; 

obiciet  nemo  sordes  mihi  quas  tibi,  Tilli, 

cum  Tiburte  via  praetorem  quinque  sequuntur 

te  pueri,  lasanum  portantes  oenophorumque. 

Hoc  ego  commodius  quam  tu,  praeclare  senator, 

milibus  atque  aliis  vivo.     Quacumque  libido  est, 

incedo  solus ;  percontor  quanti  olus  ac  far ; 

fallacem  circum  vespertinumque  pererro 

saepe  forum  ;  adsisto  divinis  ;  inde  domum  me 


106.  A  reminiscence  of  Lucilius, 
1027  (Marx),  mantica  cantheri 
costas  gravitate  premebat.  — 
ulceret :  subjv.,  because  the  whole 
situation  is  hypothetical  (silibet). 

107  if.  Horace  may  travel  the 
whole  length  of  Italy  alone,  riding 
his  mule  and  carrying  his  baggage 
behind  the  saddle,  but  a  praetor 
must  have  a  retinue  to  go  only  to 
Tibur  and  even  then  may  be 
accused  of  meanness  because  his 
attendants  are  so  few  in  number. 
—  Tilli :  the  same  man  who  is 
mentioned  in  vs.  24. — quinque 
.  .  .  pueri :  a  number  great  enough 
to  be  an  incumbrance,  but  not 
sufficient  for  real  dignity  according 
to  Roman  standards. 

109.  lasanum  .  .  .  oenopho- 
rumque :  camp  kettle  and  wine 
basket.  But  the  exact  uses  of  these 
utensils  are  not  made  clear  and  we 
can  only  guess  whether  the  carry- 
ing of  them  is  mentioned  as  evi- 
dence of  a  desire  for  display  or 
as  proof  of  sordes •,  because  he 
wished  to  avoid  the  expense  of 
an  inn. 


in.  milibus  atque  aliis :  and 
in  a  thousand  other  ways  •  corre- 
sponding to  hoc.  —  libido  est :  = 
libet,  as  often  in  early  Latin.  — 
The  picture  of  a  day's  round  of  in- 
terests and  occupations,  which  oc- 
cupies the  rest  of  the  satire,  begins 
with  the  middle  of  the  afternoon 
and  closes  (vs.  128)  with  lunch 
and  the  afternoon  siesta. 

112.  solus:  without  a  trouble- 
some retinue,  such  as  a  senator 
would  feel  obliged  to  have.  — 
percontor :  not  with  the  intention 
of  buying,  but  in  order  to  get  into 
conversation  with  the  hucksters. 

113.  fallacem  circum:  the  Cir- 
cus Maximus  was  a  gathering- 
place  for  all  sorts  of  swindlers  and 
street  fakirs. — vespertinum:  by 
the  middle  of  the  afternoon  the 
courts  had  adjourned  (cf.  Epist. 
I,  7,  46-48,  where  the  lawyer  goes 
home  octa-vam  circiter  horam}, 
the  main  business  of  the  day  was 
over  and  the  Forum  was  given  up 
to  idlers. 

114.  adsisto  divinis:  /  stop 
and  watch  the  fortune  tellers.  — 


109 


1,6,  i is] 


HORATI 


120 


ad  porri  et  ciceris  refero  laganique  catinum. 
Cena  ministratur  pueris  tribus,  et  lapis  albus 
pocula  cum  cyatho  duo  sustinet ;  adstat  echinus 
vilis,  cum  patera  guttus,  Campana  supellex. 
Deinde  eo  dormitum,  non  sollicitus,  mihi  quod  eras 
surgendum  sit  mane,  obeundus  Marsya,  qui  se 
voltum  ferre  negat  Noviorum  posse  minoris. 
Ad  quartam  iaceo ;  post  hanc  vagor ;  aut  ego,  lecto 
aut  scripto  quod  me  taciturn  iuvet,  unguor  olivo, 


These  details  are  given  to  illus- 
trate Horace's  freedom  from  the 
embarrassment  of  social  position  ; 
they  illustrate  also  his  humorous 
interest  in  all  sides  of  life. 

115.  The  Romans  were  not 
vegetarians,  but  they  ate  meat 
less  often  than  the  more  northern 
races  and  regarded  it  as  a  luxury. 
Cf.  Carm.  i,  31,  15  f.,  where  the 
'simple  life'  is  suggested  by  say- 
ing me  pascunt  olivae,  me  cichorea 
levesque  tnalvae. 

116-118.  The  details  are  further 
evidence  of  the  unostentatious  sim- 
plicity of  his  life.  —  pueris  tribus: 
a  moderate  number  for  a  Roman 
gentleman;  cf.  Sat.  i,  3,  11  f., 
where  an  establishment  of  ten 
slaves  is  contrasted  with  one  of 
two  hundred  to  illustrate  the  ex- 
tremes of  simplicity  and  extrava- 
gance.—  lapis  albus:  a  slab  of 
marble  on  three  legs ;  cf.  Sat. 
i,  3,  13  n.  —  pocula  .  .  .  duo: 
perhaps  for  two  kinds  of  wine  or 
two  different  mixtures  of  wine  and 
water.  —  cyatho :  the  ladle  for  dip- 
ping the  wine  out  of  the  mixing 


bowl.  —  echinus:  the  scholiasts 
make  various  guesses  as  to  the 
use  of  this  unknown  utensil.  — 
cum  patera  guttus :  an  oil  bottle 
•with  its  saucer.  —  Campana  :  ordi- 
nary earthenware. 

120  f .  obeundus  Marsya :  must 
go  to  meet  Marsyas,  i.e.  must  go  to 
the  part  of  the  Forum  where  the 
statue  of  Marsyas  stood,  to  meet 
some  early  business  obligation. 
The  statement  of  Servius  (on  Aen. 
4,  58)  that  statues  of  Marsyas  with 
uplifted  hand  were  erected  in 
market  places  points  to  a  Silenus 
figure  and  excludes  a  reference  to 
the  flaying  of  Marsyas  by  Apollo. 
The  gesture  is  here  humorously  in- 
terpreted as  an  expression  of  dis- 
like to  the  looks  of  the  younger 
Novius,  a  banker  whose  stall  stood 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  statue. 

122.  Ad  quartam:    somewhere 
about  ten  o'clock.     A  senator  was 
expected  to  receive  clients  early  in 
the  morning;  cf.  I,  I,  lo  n. 

123.  taciturn    iuvet:      i.e.     he 
finds   pleasure   in  his  reading  or 
writing,  without  needing  any  com- 


I    10 


SERMONES 


i,  6, 


I25 


130 


non  quo  fraudatis  immundus  Natta  lucernis. 
Ast  ubi  me  fessum  sol  acrior  ire  lavatum 
admonuit,  fugio  campum  lusumque  trigonem. 
Pransus  non  avide,  quantum  interpellet  inani 
ventre  diem  durare,  domesticus  otior.     Haec  est 
vita  solutorum  misera  ambitione  gravique ; 
his  me  consoler  victurum  suavius  ac  si 
quaestor  avus  pater  atque  meus  patruusque  fuisset. 


panion  to  express  it  to.  —  unguor : 
he  is  rubbed  down  with  olive  oil, 
preparatory  to  his  regular  exercise. 

124..  Natta :  unknown.  The 
oil  which  he  stole  from  the  lamps 
would  be  of  poor  quality. 

126.  trigonem:  in  appos.  to 
lusum.  The  game  was  played  by 
three  persons  (hence  rptywi/os), 
who  stood  at  the  corners  of  a 
triangle  and  'passed'  the  ball,  not 
using  a  bat. 

127  f.  Pransus:  l\\e prandium, 
lunch,  was  usually  about  one 
o'clock.  —  domesticus  otior :  a  hu- 
morous expression ;  domesticus  is 
not  precisely  the  same  as  do  mi, 
and  otior,  of  which  the  scholiast 


says  '  verbum  finxit  quod  significat 
otium  ago?  is  used  only  once  before 
this,  in  a  joking  quotation  by 
Cicero  (de  Off.  3,  14,  58). 

130.  his :    abl.   neut.,  like  hoc, 
no,  and  milibus  aliis,  in. 

131.  quaestor :  the  lowest  office 
in  the  cursus  honorum,  election  to 
which     gave    admission     to     the 
Senate.     To    have    reached    this 
office,  however,  without  going  be- 
yond it,  was  not  a  great  distinction, 
and  the  line  therefore  means  •  than 
if  my  ancestors  had  barely  squeezed 
into  the  Senate,'  with  a  little  good- 
humored  scorn  of  men  who  prided 
themselves  upon   mere  senatorial 
rank. 


The  event  which  is  the  subject  of  this  satire  occurred  at  Clazomenae 
in  Asia  Minor,  while  Brutus  was  acting  as  governor  of  Macedonia  and 
Asia,  either  in  43  B.C.  or  in  the  first  half  of  42,  before  the  battle  of 
Philippi. 

But  the  date  of  composition  is  less  certain;  the  satire  may  have 
been  written  immediately  after  the  incident  or  it  may  be  a  reminiscence 
of  the  campaign  written  out  at  any  time  between  41,  when  Horace 
returned  to  Rome,  and  35  B.C.,  when  the  first  book  of  satires  was  pub- 
lished. As  the  satire  itself  contains  no  specific  allusions  to  fix  the 

in 


1,7,1]  HORATI 

date  of  composition,  there  is  left  only  the  rather  uncertain  method  ot 
adjusting  its  general  tone  to  what  may  be  supposed  to  have  been  Horace's 
attitude  of  mind  at  one  date  or  another.  These  indications  point  to  the 
earliest  date ;  the  tone  toward  Rupilius  is  different  from  his  general 
attitude  of  loyalty  toward  his  companions  in  that  ill-fated  campaign ; 
the  allusion  in  vs.  3  to  the  widespread  circulation  of  the  story  would  be 
pointless  five  years  after  the  occurrence;  the  reference  to  Brutus  in  vss. 
33  ff.,  which  in  any  case  seems  flippant,  is  easier  to  understand  if  the 
lines  were  written  before  the  battle  of  Philippi  and  left  standing  as  a 
part  of  the  record,  than  if  we  suppose  them  to  have  been  written  with 
deliberation  after  the  tragic  death  of  Brutus.  And,  in  general,  the  tone 
of  the  satire  is  distinctly  less  mature  and  thoughtful  than  the  tone  of 
Satires  3,  4,  6.  There  is  a  certain  crudeness  and  harshness  in  it,  a 
certain  sensationalism,  a  failure  to  reach  the  principles  of  conduct  which 
underlie  particular  events ;  in  these  respects  it  is  like  Satires  2  and  8 
and  is  to  be  classed  with  them  as  belonging  to  the  earliest  period  of 
Horace's  work.  It  is  as  an  example  of  the  work  of  that  period  —  a 
better  example  than  either  Satire  2  or  8  —  that  it  is  here  provided  with 
a  commentary. 

The  course  of  the  thought  is  so  simple  as  to  need  no  paraphrase. 

Proscripti  Regis  Rupili  pus  atque  venenum 
hybrida  quo  pacto  sit  Persius  ultus,  opinor 
omnibus  et  lippis  notum  et  tonsoribus  esse. 

i.   P.  Rupilius  Rex  of  Praeneste  Sat.  2,  i,  72  ;  the  abusive  and  ven- 

had  been  an  adherent  of  Pompey's  omous  Rupilius. 
party  and  was  praetor  at  the  time          a.   hybrida   .   .    .  Persius :   the 

of  Caesar's  death.     He  was  pro-  half-breed  Persius.      He  is   said 

scribed  by  Antony  and  Octavius  by  the  scholiasts  to  have  been  the 

and    took    refuge    with     Brutus,  son  of  a  Greek  father  and  a  Roman 

who  gave  him,  as  a  man  of  some  mother ;  if  this  is  correct,  he  had 

prominence,  a  place  on  his  staff  taken  a  Roman  name.  —  sit  .  .  . 

(vs.    25).      The    cognomen    Rex  ultus:  punished,  castigated.     The 

was    common    in    his     family.  —  idea  of  vengeance  in  this  word  is 

Proscripti :  in  contrast  with  Regis.  much  less  prominent  than  the  or- 

—  Rupili  pus  atque   venenum :    a  dinary  definitions  make  it. 
parody   of  the   epic   phrases   like  3.    lippis,  tonsoribus :  the  shops 

upov  fifvo<:  'AA*ivooio ;   cf.  virtus  of  apothecaries  and  barbers  were 

Scipiadae  et  nritis  sapienlia  Laeli,  lounging   places    and   centers    of 

112 


SERMONES 


Li>7> 


Persius  hie  permagna  negotia  dives  habebat 
Clazomenis,  etiam  litis  cum  Rege  molestas, 
durus  homo,  atque  odio  qui  posset  vincere  Regem, 
confidens  tumidusque,  adeo  sermonis  amari, 
Sisennas,  Barros  ut  equis  praecurreret  albis. 
Ad  Regem  redeo.     Postquam  nihil  inter  utrumque 
convenit  (hoc  etenim  sunt  omnes  iure  molesti, 
quo  fortes,  quibus  adversum  bellum  incidit ;  inter 
Hectora  Priamiden  animosum  atque  inter  Achillem 


gossip.  The  obvious  words  would 
have  been  el  medicis  et  tonsoribits, 
but  inflammation  of  the  eyes  was 
a  frequent  subject  of  ridicule  and 
Horace  substitutes  the  name  of 
this  one  class  of  patients  for  the 
commoner  phrase. 

5.  etiam    litis :     and    likewise 
lawsuits,  as  if  the   lawsuits  were 
an  inevitable  consequence  of  the 
large  business  interests.     Rupilius 
had  been  the  head  of  a  syndicate 
of  contractors  for  the  taxes  (ma- 
gist  er   in    ea    societate     \_publica- 
norum~\,  Cic.  ad  Fam.  13,  9,  2),  a 
position  which  would  easily  give 
rise  to  lawsuits. 

6.  odio  .  .  .  vincere:   surpass 
Rex  in  making  a  nuisance  of  him- 
self.     So    Plaut.    Asm.  446,  iam 
die   me   abegeril   suo   odio ;    Ter. 
Phorm.  849,  numquam  tu  odio  tuo 
me  vinces. 

8.  Sisennas,  Barros  :  unknown  ; 
the  plural  indicates  the  class ;  men 
like  Sisenna.  —  equis  .  .  .  albis : 
white  horses  were  proverbial  for 
speed,  so  that  the  sense  is  '  with 

HOK.  SAT.  —  8  113 


perfect  ease,' '  he  could  give  odds 
to.' 

9.  Ad  Regem  redeo :  this  is  a 
common  formula  for  returning  to 
the  main  point  after  a  digression 
(cf.  vs.  45  of  the  preceding  Sat- 
ire), but  here  there  is  no  real 
digression  and  certainly  no  re- 
turning to  Rex.  The  stock  phrase 
is  used  partly  with  humorous  in- 
tent, but  chiefly  to  keep  the  name 
Rex,  upon  which  the  pun  is  to  be 
made,  before  the  reader's  mind. 

10  f.  convenit :  i.e.  no  compro- 
mise out  of  court  could  be  made. 
The  parenthesis,  10-18,  explains, 
again  in  parody  of  epic  style,  why 
they  would  not  compromise.  —  hoc 
.  .  .  incidit :  '  all  nuisances  (mo- 
lesti) have  just  the  same  rights  that 
mighty  heroes  (fortes)  have,  who 
meet  in  deadly  fray.'  hoc  iure  is 
the  pred.  of  sunt,  omnes  molesti  the 
subject ;  hoc  is  the  antecedent  of 
quo  (sc.  iure) .  —  adversum :  battle 
face  to  face ;  of  the  matching 
of  two  warriors  against  each 
other.  . 


«•  7.  '3] 


HORATI 


20 


ira  fuit  capitalis,  ut  ultima  divideret  mors, 
non  aliam  ob  causam  nisi  quod  virtus  in  utroque 
summa  fuit :  duo  si  discordia  vexet  inertis, 
aut  si  disparibus  bellum  incidat,  ut  Diomedi 
cum  Lycio  Glauco,  discedat  pigrior,  ultro 
muneribus  missis) :  Bruto  praetore  tenente 
ditem  Asiarn,  Rupili  et  Persi  par  pugnat,  uti  non 
compositum  melius  cum  Bitho  Bacchius.     In  ius 
acres  procurrunt,  magnum  spectaculum  uterque. 
Persius  exponit  causam  ;  ridetur  ab  omni 


13.  capitalis:  deadly,  expanded 
in  the  following  clause.  —  ultima: 
i.e.  death  alone,  death  at  the  end. 

14.  non  aliam  ob  causam :  the 
higher  motives,  like  Hector's  pa- 
triotism, are  intentionally  ignored 
and,  in  parody  of  the  heroic  spirit, 
the   heroes   fight   simply   because 
they    are    fighters    (virtus   .    .    . 
summa) . 

15  f.    inertis  :    cowards  ;     con- 
trasted with  fortes,  vs.   1 1 .  —  dis- 
paribus :    contrasted  with   adver- 
sum,  vs.  II,  which  implies  equality. 

16  ff.   Cf.  //.  6,  119  ff.,  where 
Glaucus  refuses  to   fight  Diomed 
because  of  the  old  friendship  be- 
tween  them,  and  they  part  with 
an  exchange  of  armor  and  gifts. 
This  pleasing  incident  in  the  war 
is  here,  in  continuation  of  the  par- 
ody of  heroic  motives,  intentionally 
misinterpreted  into  cowardice  and 
the  payment  of  a  ransom. 

18.  praetore :  Brutus  was  prae- 
tor ur bonus  in  44  and  in  43-42 
was  holding  Macedonia  and  Asia 


Minor  in  a  partially  legalized  way 
as  propraetor.  But  the  title  prae- 
tor is  especially  suitable  to  him 
when  he  was  holding  court,  as  here. 
19  f.  par:  the  pair;  a  technical 
term,  of  two  gladiators.  —  pugnat : 
grammatically  the  leading  verb  of 
postquam  .  .  .  con-venti,  9-10. — 
compositum :  also  a  technical  word, 
of  the  matching  of  two  gladiators  ; 
cf.  Sat.  i,  i,  103  n.  —  cum  Bitho 
Bacchius :  two  well-known  gladia- 
tors of  the  time  of  Augustus.  The 
combined  phrase  (=  Bithus  et 
Bacchius)  is  the  subject  of  sit  to 
be  supplied  and  compositum  (sc. 
par)  melius  is  the  predicate,  drawn 
into  the  subordinate  clause  as  can- 
didiores  is  drawn  into  the  qualis- 
clause  in  Sat.  I,  5,  41  f.  'So 
matched  that  Bithus  and  Bacchius 
are  not  a  better  matched  pair.' 

21.  procurrunt,      spectaculum: 
these  words   carry  on    the   meta- 
phor from  the  arena. 

22.  ridetur :  impers. ;   laughter 
from  the  whole  court. 


114 


SERMONES 


7.  3» 


conventu  ;  laudat  Brutum  laudatque  cohortem  : 

solem  Asiae  Brutum  appellat,  stellasque  salubris 
25      appellat  comites,  excepto  Rege  ;  canem  ilium, 

invisum  agricolis  sidus,  venisse.     Ruebat, 

flumen  ut  hibernum,  fertur  quo  rara  securis. 

Turn  Praenestinus  salso  multoquo  fluent! 

expressa  arbusto  regerit  convicia,  durus 
30      vindemiator  et  invictus,  cui  saepe  viator 

cessisset,  magna  compellans  voce  cuculum. 


23.  conventu :  the  regular  term 
for  the  officials  gathered  to  meet 
the  praetor  at  the  places  in  his  cir- 
cuit where  he  held  court.  —  cohor- 
tem :  the  staff  of  a  provincial  gov- 
ernor; also  called  comites,  as  in 
vs.  25. 

25.  canem :  Sirius,  the  Dog- 
star,  which  brought  the  heat  and 
drought.  The  whole  series  of  com- 
parisons, which  were  meant  to  prej- 
udice the  court  in  favor  of  the 
speaker,  are  to  be  thought  of  as 
made  from  the  standpoint  of  the 
native  farmers. 

27.  fertur    quo     rara    securis: 
whither  the  ax  of  the  woodcutter 
is  seldom  carried,  i.e.  in  the  depths 
of   the    forest,    as    the    snow    of 
winter     melts.       The     figure     of 
a    rushing     torrent     is     common 
enough,    but    this    phrase    is    too 
poetic  for  the  context  and  sounds 
like  parody. 

28.  multo  :  adj.,  but  to  be  joined 
closely  with  fluenti;  the  two  to- 
gether are  the  dat.  of  the  ptc.  of 
multus  fliio  (cf.  Sat.  1,4,  11,  cum 
flueret  lutulentus};  salso  and  multo 


fluenti  agree  with  a  dat.  to  be  sup- 
plied after  regerit. 

29.  expressa      arbusto:       lit., 
'squeezed  from  the  vineyard,'/./?. 
drawn  from  the  vocabulary  of  the 
vinedresser,  redolent  of  the  vine- 
yard, as  the  English  '  billingsgate ' 
is  language  from  the  fish  market. 
The  general  idea  is  more  specifi- 
cally expressed  in  vss.  30-31.  —  re- 
gerit :  hurled  back. 

30.  vindemiator:  in  four  sylla- 
bles, •vindenitator.     Like  a  tough 
and  invincible  vinedresser  $  with- 
out ut,  as  often  in  Horace. 

31.  cessisset:     i.e.    had    been 
obliged   to  admit   himself  beaten 
in   fluency   of  insult.  —  cuculum : 
the  tradition  given  by  the  elder 
Pliny  (H.  AT.  18,  66,  249)  is  that, 
since  the  pruning  ought  to  have 
been  finished  in  the  early  spring, 
before     the     cuckoo     came,    the 
passer-by  would  imitate  the  cry  of 
the  cuckoo  to  a  vinedresser  as  an 
intimation   that    he    was    behind- 
hand in  his  work.    But  this  sounds 
like  the  forced   explanation  of  a 
grammarian  ;  compellans  cunt  lion 


1,7,32]  IIOKATI 

At  Graecus,  postquam  est  Italo  perfusus  aceto, 
Persius  exclamat :  '  Per  magnos,  Brute,  deos  te 
oro,  qui  reges  consueris  tollere,  cur  non 
35      hunc    Regem    iugulas?      Operum   hoc,    mihi   crede, 
tuorum  est.' 

means  simply  calling  him  a  cuckoo.  Tarquins,  and  to  Brutus  himself 

[The  Plautine  passages  are  Asin.  as  one  of  the  liberatores  who  had 

923,  934,  Pers.  282,  Ps.  96,  Trin.  killed  Caesar. 

245.     They  all  antedate  the  ex-  35.   Regem:  the  same  pun  upon 

planation  given  by  Pliny.]  the  name  of  Q.  Marcius  Rex  was 

32.   Graecus,  Italo :  in  contrast.  made  by  Cicero  (ad  Att.   i,  16, 

34.    qui  .  .  .  consueris:     since  10).  —  Operum  .  .  .  tuorum :  pred. 

you  have  the  habit  of  removing  gen.;    'this  is  just  in  your  line,' 

Kings,  with  reference  to  his  an-  'just  the  proper  kind  of  business 

cestor,  who  had  driven  out  the  for  you.' 


8 

There  is  no  allusion  in  this  satire  definite  enough  to  fix  the  date. 
The  plot  of  ground  which  is  the  scene  had  been  a  burial-place,  and  was 
afterward  acquired  by  Maecenas  and  used  as  the  site  for  his  palace  and 
gardens.  But  the  date  when  he  acquired  the  land  is  not  known.  Nor 
is  it  clear  that  the  land  is  in  the  possession  of  Maecenas  either  at 
the  time  when  the  events  are  represented  as  occurring  or  at  the  later 
time  when  the  garden  god  tells  the  story.  The  spot  cannot  be  thought 
of  as  still  in  use  for  burial,  since  the  figure  of  Priapus  stands  there,  and, 
on  the  other  hand,  the  gathering  of  bones  (vs.  22)  and  the  selection 
of  the  spot  by  two  witches  as  a  place  for  incantations  is  scarcely  com- 
patible with  its  being  a  private  garden.  Apparently  the  events  are 
thought  of  as  having  occurred  while  the  transformation  from  burial- 
place  to  garden  was  still  incomplete.  Verses  14-16  allude  to  a  later 
stage,  but  it  is  strange  that  there  should  be  no  direct  allusion  to  Mae- 
cenas, to  whom  in  later  satires  Horace  refers  with  such  evident  pride 
and  pleasure,  if  he  already  owned  the  land  and  had  built  his  great 
house  there. 

The  satire  evidently  belongs  in  the  same  period  as  Epodes  5  and  1 7, 
»nd  seems  to  be  referred  to  in  vss.  47,  55  and  77  of  the  latter  Epode. 
But  neither  of  these  poems  can  be  dated  with  certainty.  In  the 

116 


SERMONES  [i,  8,  g 

absence  of  data,  on  the  general  grounds  of  tone  and  manner  —  the  lack 
of  real  humor,  the  coarseness,  the  cynicism —  the  satire  may  be  placed 
with  2  and  7  of  this  book  in  the  group  of  earlier  writings. 

The  fact  that  the  speaker  is  the  figure  of  the  garden  god  Priapus 
gives  to  the  satire  a  certain  resemblance  to  the  Priapea,  of  which  we 
have  a  collection,  but  in  substance  this  is  a  satire  upon  the  kind  of 
incantations  described  by  Vergil  in  Eclogue  8.  On  the  personal  side 
it  is  an  attack  upon  a  certain  Canidia,  who  is  also  savagely  attacked  in 
Epode  5  and  ironically  ridiculed  in  Epode  17,  and  who  is  mentioned 
in  several  places  in  the  Satires  and  Epistles.  The  scholiast  says  that 
her  real  name  was  Gratidia,  that  she  was  a  seller  of  drugs,  a  witch  and 
a  poisoner.  How  much  of  this  is  fact  we  do  not  know,  but  undoubtedly 
a  real  person  is  referred  to  under  the  name.  The  hostility  with  which 
Horace  pursues  her  is  distinctly  unpleasant,  and  this  poem  and  Epodes 
5  and  17  reveal  him  on  his  least  admirable  side. 

Olim  truncus  eram  ficulnus,  inutile  lignum, 
cum  faber,  incertus  scamnum  faceretne  Priapum, 
maluit  esse  deum.     Deus  inde  ego,  furum  aviumque 
maxima  formido ;  nam  fures  dextra  coercet 
5     obscaenoque  ruber  porrectus  ab  inguine  palus ; 
ast  importunas  volucres  in  vertice  arundo 
terret  fixa  vetatque  novis  considere  in  hortis. 
Hue  prius  angustis  eiecta  cadavera  cellis 
conservus  vili  portanda  locabat  in  area ; 

1.  Olim  truncus  eram  :  the  con-  3.    Deus  inde  ego :   humorously 
trast   between  roughness    of   the  emphasizing  his  claim  to  divinity, 
figure  and  the  fact  that  it  was  sup-  immediately  after  the  acknowledg- 
posed  to  represent  a  god  is  not  ment  that  he  owed  it  to  a  work- 
infrequently  alluded  to  in  Priapus  man. 

poems.  —  inutile:    the    wood    of  4.    dextra:  the  right  hand  held 

the  fig-tree  splits  easily.  a  club  or  a  sickle. 

2.  Priapum :  the  statue  was  set  6.  arundo  :  the  reed  was  moved 
up  originally  to  represent  the  god  by  the  wind. 

of  fertility,  but  was  generally  in-  8-9.  angustis  .  .  .  cellis:  the 
terpreted  as  a  kind  of  scarecrow,  small  chambers  which  they  had 
who  frightened  away  thieves  and  occupied  while  alive.  —  conservus: 
birds.  the  master  paid  no  attention  to 

117 


i,  8,  10] 


HORATI 


hoc  miserae  plebi  stabat  commune  sepulchrum, 
Pantolabo  scurrae  Nomentanoque  nepoti : 
mille  pedes  in  fronte,  trecentos  cippus  in  agrum 
hie  dabat,  heredes  monumentum  ne  sequeretur. 
Nunc  licet  Esquiliis  habitare  salubribus  atque 
aggere  in  aprico  spatiari,  quo  modo  tristes 
albis  informem  spectabant  ossibus  agrum; 
cum  mihi  non  tantum  furesque  feraeque,  suetae 
hunc  vexare  locum,  curae  sunt  atque  labori, 
quantum  carminibus  quae  versant  atque  venenis 


the  death  of  a  slave.  —  locabat: 
not  placed,  but  contracted  for  the 
burial  with  the  undertakers.  — 
area :  the  box  in  which  the  body 
was  carried  to  the  burial-place. — 
These  details  are  pathetic  to  the 
modern  reader,  but  it  is  not  likely 
that  Horace  felt  the  pathos  or  in- 
tended to  express  it.  His  tone  is 
rather  hard  and  cynical. 

ii.  This  verse  is  probably 
Lucilian,  though  the  scholiast 
gives  an  account  of  the  man  who 
was  called  by  the  nickname  Panto- 
labus. 

12-13.  in  fronte,  in  agrum: 
technical  terms  in  surveying,  like 
the  English  '  1000  feet  front,  300 
feet  deep '  ;  usage  varies  between 
the  ace.  and  the  abl.  and  Horace 
has  used  both  cases. — cippus:  a 
stone  pillar  on  which  the  dimen- 
sions of  the  plot  of  ground  were 
inscribed,  followed  often  by  the 
letters  H.  M.  H.  N.  S.,  hoc  monu- 
mentum heredes  ne  sequatur  (or 
non  seyuitur),  meaning  that  the 


lot  and  tombstone  shall  not  be 
considered  a  part  of  the  estate 
and  shall  therefore  not  pass  to  the 
heirs,  but  shall  remain  perpetually 
a  burial-place. 

14.  salubribus :  predicate  ;  it  had 
been  before  especially  unhealthy. 

15.  aggere:  the  Mound  of  Ser- 
vius  Tullius,  the  old  wall  of  earth 
that  surrounded  the  smaller  early 
city. — quo:     the    absence    of  a 
preposition   is  perhaps  to  be  ex- 
plained  by    the    nearness  of   in 
aprico ;    there    seems    to   be   no 
good  parallel  for  quo  in  the  sense 
of   ubi.  —  tristes:    predicate;   de- 
pressed by  the  sight. 

17.  cum :  while  I,  in  contrast 
to  their  leisurely  strolling  {spati- 
ari), have  only  care  and  trouble. 

—  ferae :  the  wolves  and  vultures 
(Epod.  5,  99  f.)  that  fed  upon  the 
unburied      bodies.  —  suetae  :      in 
three  syllables. 

19.  quae  :  the  antecedent  is  the 
subj.  of  sunt  curae,  to  be  supplied. 

—  versant :  affect t  move. 


118 


SERMONES 


i,  8,  33 


20 


humanos  animos.     Has  nullo  perdere  possum 
nee  prohibere  modo,  simul  ac  vaga  luna  decorum 
protulit  os,  quin  ossa  legant  herbasqQe  nocentis. 
Vidi  egomet  nigra  succinctam  vadere  palla 
Canidiam  pedibus  nudis  passoque  capillo, 
cum  Sagana  maiore  ululantem.     Pallor  utrasque 
fecerat  horrendas  aspectu.     Scalpere  terram 
unguibus  et  pullam  divellere  mordicus  agnam 
coeperunt ;  cruor  in  fossam  confusus,  ut  inde 
manis  elicerent,  animas  responsa  daturas. 
Lanea  et  effigies  erat,  altera  cerea  :  maior 
lanea,  quae  poenis  compesceret  inferiorem ; 
cerea  suppliciter  stabat  servilibus,  ut  quae 
iam  peritura,  modis.     Hecaten  vocat  altera,  saevam 


21.  simul  ac:   at  the  time  of 
full  moon;  the  phases  of  the  moon 
have  always  been  considered  po- 
tent in  the  working  of  spells. 

22.  ossa,  herbas  :  for  use  in  the 
magic  rites. 

23  f.  Vidi  egomet:  with  these 
words  Priapus  begins  the  story 
which  is  the  real  subject  of  the 
satire.  The  details  of  Canidia's 
dress  and  appearance  are  conven- 
tional, the  gown  girded  up,  the 
black  robe,  the  bare  feet  and  flow- 
ing hair.  They  are  repeated  in 
Ovid's  description  of  Medea, 
Metam.  7,  1 82  f. 

25.  Sagana :  mentioned  again 
in  Epod.  5,  25.  —  maiore:  the 
elder  of  two  sisters.  —  ululantem : 
regularly  of  the  cries  of  women ; 
Aen.  2, 488.  —  Pallor :  the  witches 
shared  the  horror  of  the  scene. 


26.  Scalpere  terram :   to  maka 
the  fossa  into  which  the  blood  of 
the  victim  was  allowed    to  flow. 

27.  unguibus,  mordicus :   these 
details  are  added  to  heighten  tho 
horrors  of  the  rites. 

29.  responsa :  in  the  scene  in 
the  lower  world,  Horn.  Od.  u, 
36  ff.,  the  shades  come  to  drink 
of  the  blood,  and  the  Theban  seerf 
Tiresias,  prophesies  to  Odysseus- 
Cf.  also  the  Introd.  to  Sat.  2,  5- 

30-33.  effigies  :  in  Verg.  Ed.  8, 
80  f.,  one  of  the  figures  is  of  clay, 
the  other  of  wax.  The  one  which 
is  not  affected  by  heat  represents 
the  person  for  whose  benefit  the 
rites  are  performed ;  the  waxen 
image  represents  the  person  who 
is  to  be  subdued  and  melted  with 
love.  The  dominion  of  the  one  is 
expressed  in  poenis  compesceret, 


119 


I.  8,  34]  HORATI 

altera  Tisiphonen  ;  serpentis  atque  videres 

35      infernas  errare  canes,  Lunamque  rubentem, 
ne  foret  his  testis,  post  magna  latere  sepulchra. 
Mentior  at  si  quid,  merdis  caput  inquiner  albis 
corvorum,  atque  in  me  veniat  mictum  atque  cacatum 
lulius  et  fragilis  Pediatia  furque  Voranus. 

40      Singula  quid  memorem  ?    quo  pacto  alterna  loquentes 
umbrae  cum  Sagana  resonarent  triste  et  acutum, 
utque  lupi  barbam  variae  cum  dente  colubrae 
abdiderint  furtim  terris,  et  imagine  cerea 
largior  arserit  ignis,  et  ut  non  testis  inultus 

45      horruerim  voces  Furiarum  et  facta  duarum  : 
nam,  displosa  sonat  quantum  vesica,  pepedi 
diffissa  nate  ficus  :  at  illae  currere  in  urbem ; 
Canidiae  dentes,  altum  Saganae  caliendrum 
excidere  atque  herbas  atque  incantata  lacertis 

50      vincula  cum  m'agno  risuque  iocoque  videres. 

the  submission   of  the    other  in  brighter  as  the  waxen  image  melted 

inferiorem,   snppliciter,  servilibus  into  the  flame. 

modis  (like  a  slave),  iam  peritura.  48.  dentes:  i.e.  false    teeth. — 

35.  infernas :     of     the     lower  caliendrum :  a  wig  or  structure  of 
world,  such  as  followed  Hecate.  false  hair.     The  witches  are  rep- 

36.  magna    .    .    .     sepulchra :  resented  as  hags  who  tried  to  con- 
such  great  tombs  as  stood,  and  in  ceal  the  ravages  of  age. 

part  still  stand  in  ruins,  along  the  49.   incantata  :     tied    on    with 

Appian  Way,  south  of  the  city.  magic  rites;  a  formula  had  been 

40  f.  alterna  :     Sagana    asked  uttered  as  the  bands  were  fastened 

questions    and     the    shades    an-  about  their  arms.     This  had  not 

swerecl. — acutum:     in    the    thin  been  alluded  to  before,  but  licia. 

voice  of  the  dead,  Aen.  6,  492  f.  threads,  were  used  in  Verg.  Eel. 

42.  lupi  barbam :    cf.  Macbeth,  8,  73. 

IV.    I,  'Fillet  of  a  fenny  snake,'  50.   risuque  iocoque:  cf.  Sat.  I, 

and   '  Scale   of  dragon,   tooth   of  5,  98,  dedit  risiisque  iocosque.  — 

wolf,'   which   were    put    into   the  videres :  indefinite  second  person, 

witches1  cauldron.  especially  frequent  with  this  verb, 

44.  largior :     the    fire    burned  e.g.  Sat.  i,  5,  76. 

120 


SERMONES  [i,  9,  3 


This  satire  was  written  between  38  and  35  B.C.,  later  than  the  first 
group,  Satires  2,  7,  and  8,  but  before  Satire  i  and  probably  before  10. 
There  is  no  allusion  which  makes  a  more  precise  dating  possible  and, 
as  is  usually  the  case  where  distinct  allusions  are  lacking,  there  is 
nothing  in  the  satire  which  would  gain  in  interpretation  if  a  more  pre- 
cise date  could  be  fixed. 

In  form  the  satire  is  an  account  of  a  morning  walk  in  which  Horace 
was  joined  by  a  mere  acquaintance,  who  desired  to  cultivate  a  closer 
intimacy  with  him,  in  order,  as  finally  appeared,  to  secure  through  him 
an  introduction  to  Maecenas.  Various  attempts  to  shake  him  off  were 
unsuccessful  and  an  appeal  to  a  passing  friend  was  without  effect,  until 
chance  intervened  to  save  the  poet.  In  grace  and  lightness  of  tone  the 
satire  is  equaled  only  by  some  of  the  odes.  The  struggle  between 
politeness  and  the  desire  to  be  free,  the  humorous  consciousness  of  the 
joke  upon  himself,  the  happily  conceived  dramatic  form,  reaching  a 
climax  in  the  encounter  with  Fuscus  —  all  these  make  it  unnecessary 
to  look  for  an  underlying  purpose.  But  a  secondary  motive  was 
doubtless  the  opportunity  which  the  story  afforded  of  returning  to  the 
theme  of  the  sixth  satire  and  of  showing  again  how  ill-founded  was 
the  suspicion  that  Horace  was  seeking  social  advancement  through  his 
acquaintance  with  Maecenas. 

Ibam  forte  Via  Sacra,  sicut  meus  est  mos, 
nescio  quid  meditans  nugarum,  totus  in  illis : 
accurrit  quidam  notus  mihi  nomine  tantum, 

1.  Via    Sacra:     the    principal  poems,  e.g.  Catull.  1,4.  —  totus  :  so 
street  of  the  city,  running  from  omnis  in  hoc  sum,  Epist.  r,  i,  n. 
the   Esquiline   past  the  Palatine,  3.   notus  .  .  .  tantum :     i.e.    a 
along  one  side  of  the  Forum.     It  mere  acquaintance.     The  person 
was  the  street  which  Horace  would  cannot  be  identified,  nor  is  it  at 
naturally  take  in  going  from  the  all  likely  that  Horace  had  in  mind 
residence  part  of  the  city  to  the  a   definite   individual   or  was   re- 
Tiber. —  sicut  .  .  .  mos:  cf.  i,  6,  counting  the  events  of  an  actual 
112,    122;    with   ibam,   not   with  experience.       His     purpose    was 
meditans.  rather  to  draw  a   typical  picture 

2.  nugarum:  verses;  almost  a  of  the  Social   Struggler,  without 
technical    term    for    light    lyric  direct  reference  to  any  individual. 

121 


9.  4] 


HORATI 


arreptaque  manu,  '  Quid  agis,  dulcissime  rerum  ? ' 
'Suaviter,  ut  nunc  est,'  inquam,  '  et  cupio  omnia  quae 

vis.' 

Cum  adsectaretur,  '  Numquid  vis  ? '  occupo.  At  ille 
'  Noris  nos '  inquit ;  '  docti  sumus.'  Hie  ego  '  Pluris 
hoc '  inquam  '  mihi  eris.'  Misere  discedere  quaerens, 


4.  arrepta:   seizing  my  hand, 
with  a  show  of  cordiality  and  in- 
timacy. —  dulcissime  rerum :    my 
dearest  fellow;    a    very   familiar 
form  of  greeting,     rerum  is  fre- 
quently used    as    a    generalizing 
addition,  especially  with  a  super- 
lative.    It  is  of  the  same  nature  as 
the  use  of  a  gen.  plur.  with  a  neut. 
sing,  pron.,  quidquid  hominum. 

5.  The   reply  is   made  up  of 
polite    phrases   which,    from   the 
frequency  of  their  use,  are  mere 
formulas  with   no  more  meaning 
than    the    English    'Very    well, 
thank  you ;  I  hope  you  are  well.' 
—  ut  nunc  est :  all  things  consid- 
ered, as  times  go.  —  cupio  ...  vis : 
a  common  phrase  of  politeness, 
which   appears   in  various  forms 
in  dialogue. 

6.  adsectaretur:  after  speaking 
the  words  of  vs.  5,  Horace  started 
to   walk    on.  —  Numquid  vis:    a 
common    phrase  used    in    taking 
leave  of  another  person ;  formula 
abeundi,  Donatus  calls  it.     It  is 
very  frequently  used   in   Plautus 
and   Terence.  —  occupo:    i.e.    he 
got  in  the  words  numquid  vis? 
before  the  other  could  reply,  as  a 
hint  that  he  wished  to  go  on. 


7.  Noris :    =  noverts.    Ordina- 
rily the  phrase  numquid  vis  f  ex- 
pects no  reply,  but  occasionally 
(Trin.  192,  Capt.  191,  M.  G.  575) 
the   person   addressed    takes   the 
question    literally,   as    here,   and 
replies  with  a  verb  in  the  subjv., 
as  if  with  volo ;  '  yes,  there  is ;  I 
should  like  to  have  you  make  my 
acquaintance.'—  docti  sumus:  I'm 
a  literary  man,1 '  I'm  a  man  of  cul- 
ture.'   doctus  was  used  especially 
of  the  newer  school  of  poets,  those 
who  followed  the  Alexandrian  mod- 
els ;  it  became  a  kind  of  party  cry, 
employed  by  the  new  school  as  a 
term  of  honor  and  by  their  oppo- 
nents as  a  term  of  ridicule.    Hor- 
ace was  distinctly  of  the  opposite 
school  (cf.  Sat.  i,  10,  19)  and  the 
person  is  therefore  represented  as 
offering,    as    an    inducement    to 
further    acquaintance,    a    reason 
which  would,  in  fact,  lead  Horace 
to  avoid  him. 

7  f.  Pluris  hoc  .  .  .  eris :  /shall 
value  you  all  the  more  for  that,  i.e. 
'because  you  are  doctus^;  polite- 
ness struggles  with  irony. 

8.  Misere :  awfully ;  so  below, 
14;  a  colloquialism,  very  frequent 
in  Plautus  and  Terence. 


123 


SERMONES 


f  I,  9,  20 


ire  tnodo  ocius,  interdum  consistere,  in  aurem 
10      dicere  nescio  quid  puero,  cum  sudor  ad  imos 
manaret  talos.     '  O  te,  Bolane,  cerebri 
felicem  ! '  aiebam  tacitus  ;  cum  quidlibet  ille 
garriret,  vicos,  urbem  laudaret.     Vt  illi 
nil  respondebam,  '  Misere  cupis  '  inquit  '  abire  ; 
15      iamdudum  video  ;  sed  nil  agis  ;  usque  tenebo  ; 

persequar.     Hinc  quo  nunc  iter  est  tibi  ? '     '  Nil  opus 

est  te 

circumagi ;  quendam  volo  visere  non  tibi  notum  ; 
trans  Tiberim  longe  cubat  is,  prope  Caesaris  hortos." 
'  Nil  habeo  quod  agam,  et  non  sum  piger ;  usque  se- 

quar  te.' 
20      Demitto  auriculas,  ut  iniquae  mentis  asellus, 


10.  puero :  his  attendant,  pedi- 
sequus,  to  whom  he  pretends  to 
give  some  private  orders.  —  dicere : 
historical  infin.,  as  are  ire  and  con- 
sistere. —  sudor :  as  all  his  efforts 
to  escape  fail. 

ii.  Bolane  :  a  man  of  hot  tem- 
per, who  would  not  have  been  long 
restrained  by  a  sense  of  courtesy. 
—  cerebri :  for  the  gen.,  cf.  integer 
vitae ;  for  the  meaning,  cf.  cerebro- 
sus,  Sal.  i,  5,  21. 

13.  vicos,  urbem  laudaret:  i.e. 
talked  cheerfully  about  trifles,  en- 
deavoring to  lead  Horace  into 
conversation. 

14  ff.  As  Horace's  lack  of  cor- 
diality is  too  obvious  to  be  ignored, 
the  persistent  man  attempts  to  joke 
about  it,  hoping  in  this  way  to 
extract  a  disclaimer.  —  nil  agis  : 
colloquial ;  ifs  no  use. 


17  f.  circumagi:  of  your  being 
dragged  around.  —  visere  :  to  call 
upon.  This  is,  of  course,  an  in- 
vention of  the  moment,  elaborated 
in  the  following  words,  in  which 
the  details  are  given  in  the  order 
in  which  they  occur  to  him  :  'across 
the  Tiber  —  a  long  way  off —  he's 
sick  in  bed,  too  —  way  over  by 
Caesar's  Gardens.'  Cf.  the  similar 
embarrassed  search  for  an  excuse 
in  Catull.  10,  28  ff.  —  Caesaris 
hortos  :  an  estate  on  the  Janiculum, 
left  by  Caesar's  will  to  the  Roman 
people,  to  be  a  public  park. 

20  f .  Demitto  auriculas  :  a  con- 
densed way  of  saying  '  I  felt  like 
an  ill-treated  donkey,  whose  ears 
drop  down  when  he  is  overloaded.' 
dorso  :  abl.  with  subiit,  as  in  Aen. 
2,  708,  subito  umeris.  —  subiit :  the 
subj.  is  asellus  ;  onus  is  the  object. 


123 


I,  9. 


HORATI 


-5 


cum  gravius  dorso  subiit  onus.     Incipit  ille  : 
1  Si  bene  me  novi,  non  Viscum  pluris  amicum, 
non  Varium  facies ;  nam  quis  me  scribere  pluris 
aut  citius  possit  versus  ?  quis  membra  movere 
mollius?  invideat  quod  et  Hermogenes,  ego  canto.' 
Interpellandi  locus  hie  erat :  '  Est  tibi  mater, 


The  final  syllable  is  long,  as  fre- 
quently in  the  perf.  indie,  in 
Plautus. 

22.  Si  bene  me  novi :  a  condi- 
tion in  form  only ;  as  sure  ai  I 
know  myself.  —  Viscum :  there 
were  two  brothers  of  this  name, 
both  literary  men  and  friends  of 
Horace  and  Maecenas.  They  are 
mentioned  with  honor  in  Sat.  I,  10, 
83  and  one  of  them  was  a  guest  at 
the  dinner  described  in  Sat.  2,  8. 
—  Varium :  see  note  on  i,  5,  40. 

23  ff.  To  any  one  who  knew 
Horace  well  —  and  this  satire  is 
intended  especially  for  the  amuse- 
ment of  his  intimate  friends  —  it 
would  be  plain  that  the  selection 
of  these  three  accomplishments  as 
recommendations  to  his  favor 
was,  like  the  mention  of  doctus  in 
vs.  7,  a  most  comical  blunder. 
He  particularly  disliked  rapid  and 
profuse  verse  writing  (cf.  I,  4, 
II  ff.,  17  f.) ;  he  regarded  dancing 
as  scarcely  decent  (Sat.  2, 1, 24  f.)  ; 
and  his  opinion  of  singing  in 
general  and  of  Hermogenes  in 
particular  is  plainly  implied  in  Sat. 
I,  3,  I  ff.  —  The  prose  order  of  the 
last  phrase  would  be  ego  canto 
quod  et  Hermogenes  invideat. 


26  ff.  Interpellandi  locus :  hen 
•was  my  chance  to  break  in.  The 
context  shows  that  Horace  had 
invented,  as  he  hoped,  a  new  ex- 
pedient for  getting  rid  of  his  per- 
severing friend,  but  the  exact 
nature  of  the  plan  is  not  at  first 
sight  apparent.  The  use  of  inter- 
pellandi  shows  that  it  was  not 
connected  with  the  remarks  in  vs. 
22-25  i  the  words  quis  \_  =  qnibns\ 
te  salvo  est  opus  must  mean  that 
he  was  going  to  point  out  some 
serious  danger  which  would  be  in- 
curred in  accompanying  him,  and 
the  mention  of  dependent  relatives 
is  an  elaborate  provision  to  antici- 
pate a  possible  declaration  from 
the  other  that  he  did  not  fear 
danger.  All  these  combine  to 
indicate  that  Horace  was  prepar- 
ing to  say  that  the  friend  on  whom 
he  was  going  to  call  had  a  con- 
tagious disease,  exposure  to  which 
would  be  almost  certainly  fatal. 
It  is  an  added  touch  of  humor 
that  Horace  represents  himself  as 
so  discouraged  by  the  first  slight 
failure — for  the  dependent  rela- 
tives were  not  essential  to  the 
plan  —  that  he  surrendered  in  de- 
spair. 


124 


SERMONES 


1.  9.  38 


cognati,  quis  te  salvo  est  opus  ? '    '  Haud  mihi  quisquam ; 

omnis  composui.'     '  Felices  !     Nunc  ego  resto  ; 

confice ;  namque  instat  fatum  mihi  triste,  Sabella 
30      quod  puero  cecinit  divina  mota  anus  urna : 

"Hunc  neque  df;a  venena,  nee  hosticus  auferet  ensis 

nee  laterum  dolor  aut  tussis,  nee  tarda  podagra ; 

garrulus  hunc  quando  consumet  cumque  ;  loquaces, 

si  sapiat,  vitet,  simul  atque  adoleverit  aetas."  ' 
35         Ventura  erat  ad  Vestae,  quarta  iam  parte  diei 

praeterita,  et  casu  tune  respondere  vadato 

debebat ;  quod  ni  f ecisset,  perdere  litem. 

'  Si  me  amas,'  inquit, '  paulum  hie  ades.'    '  Inteream,  si 

28-34.   These  lines  express  his      and  the  law  courts  were  near  it.  — 


emotions,  but  were  of  course  not 
spoken  aloud. 

28.  Nunc  ego  resto :   i.e.  ( my 
turn  next ;  finish  me  off,  too.' 

29.  Sabella :  with  anus.     There 
are  various  references  to  the  su- 
perstitions of  the  peasants  in  the 
mountains  away  from  the  influence 
of  the  city. 

30.  divina  mota  .  .  .  urna* :  abl. 
abs. ;  shaking  the  lots  in  her  urn, 
until  one  of  them  fell  out. 

31-34.  The  epic-oracular  style 
is  parodied  in  dira,  the  plur. 
venena,  hosticus,  ensis,  in  the  trans- 
ferred epithet  tarda.  —  laterum 
dolor :  pleurisy.  —  quando  . . .  cum- 
que :  tmesis ;  some  time  or  other. 

35  f.  Ventum  erat:  the  plupf. 
implies  by  this  time, '  while  all  this 
was  going  on.'  —  ad  Vestae;  sc. 
templum,  as  in  English  St.  Paul's, 
St.  Mary's.  The  temple  of  Vesta 
was  at  the  lower  end  of  the  Forum 


quarta  .  .  .  praeterita :  i.e.  about 
nine  o'clock.  This  has  been  held 
to  be  inconsistent  with  i,  6, 122,  ad 
quartam  iaceo;  post  hanc  vagor, 
but  it  is  obvious  that  neither 
statement  is  meant  to  be  taken 
precisely.  The  only  reason  for 
mentioning  the  hour  here  is  to 
show  that  the  courts  were  open 
for  business  and  so  to  introduce 
the  next  scene  in  the  little  drama. 
—  respondere :  a  technical  term 
of  law ;  to  appear  in  court.  — 
vadato  :  apparently  an  impersonal 
abl.  abs.  like  sortito,  auspicato; 
under  bonds,  having  given  a 
bond, 

38.  Si  mS  amas :  monosyllabic 
hiatus  with  shortening  of  the  long 
vowel ;  this  is  very  common  in 
Plautus,  but  only  under  the  ictus. 
The  words  are  a  mere  phrase  of 
politeness  to  soften  the  urgency 
of  the  imperative  ;  '  will  you  be  so 


I25 


I.  9,  39] 


HORATI 


aut  valeo  stare  aut  novi  civilia  iura ; 
40      et   propero   quo   scis.'     '  Dubius   sum   quid   faciam,1 

inquit, 
'  tene  relinquam  an  rem.'     '  Me,  sodes.'    '  Non  faciam,' 

ille, 

et  praecedere  coepit.     Ego,  ut  contendere  durum  est 
cum  victore,  sequor.     '  Maecenas  quomodo  tecum  ? ' 
hinc  repetit; '  paucorum  hominum  et  mentis  bene  sanae. 
45      Nemo  dexterius  fortuna  est  usus  ;  haberes 


kind  as  to  .  .  .'  —  ades :  in  the 
technical  sense,  to  be  present  in 
court  as  a  supporting  friend  and 
adviser,  advocatus.  The  same 
request  is  made  to  Horace  in  Sat. 
2,  6,  34  f. —  Inteream:  /'//  be 
hanged.  So  Catull.  92,  4,  dispe- 
ream  nisi  amo. 

39.  valeo  stare:  am  strong 
enough  to  stand,  as  was  customary 
in  the  praetor's  court.  The  excuse 
is  of  course  quite  inconsistent  with 
propero  quo  sets,  but  Horace  rep- 
resents himself  as  having  reached 
a  point  where  he  was  careless  of 
either  consistency  or  truth. 

41.  rem:  my  case,  which  would 
go  by  default,  if  he  failed  to  ap- 
pear. —  sodes  :  =  si  audes,  please, 
if  you  please,  used  like  sis  (=sivis, 
Sat.  i,  4,  14  n.)  to  soften  an 
imperative.  Audeo  (from  aveo, 
avidus,  avideo)  regularly  means 
to  wish,  desire,  in  Plautus;  the 
meaning  to  venture,  dare,  is  later. 
43.  Maecenas  quomodo  tecum : 
how  do  you  and  Maecenas  get  on 
together/  The  pride  which  Horace 
felt  in  the  friendship  of  Maecenas 


and  the  strength  of  his  determina- 
tion that  the  friendship  should 
remain  disinterested  render  this 
question  peculiarly  offensive. 

44.  hinc  repetit :     with  this  he 
begins  again,  after  the  slight  pause. 
—  paucorum  .  .  .  sanae :     a  man 
of  few  friends  and  of  very  sound 
judgment  (cf.  Ter.  Eun.  408   f., 
sic  homost]   per  paucorum    homi- 
num) ;    there    are   various   refer- 
ences to  the  care  with  which  Mae- 
cenas selected  the  limited  number 
of  friends   whom   he  admitted  to 
intimacy ;  but  the  best  commen- 
taries on  these  words  are  Sat.  I,  6, 
51  f.,  praesertim  cautum  dignos 
assumere,  prava  ambit 'ione  procul, 
with  the  account,  which  follows,  of 
Horace's    introduction,    and     the 
general  remarks  in  Sat.  I,  3,  58  ff., 
summarized  in  pro  bene  sano  ac 
non    incauto   fictum    astutumque 
•vocamus. 

45.  Nemo  .  .  .  usus  :  i.e.  'you've 
been  very  lucky  and  very  skillful, 
too,   in   the   way  you   have   used 
your  chances  to  get  into  the  circle 
of  his  friends.'     This  is  the  same 


126 


SERMONES 


50 


magnum  adiutorem,  posset  qui  ferre  secundas, 

hunc  hominem  velles  si  tradere ;  dispeream,  ni 

summosses  omnis.'     '  Non  isto  vivimus  illic 

quo  tu  rere  modo ;  domus  hac  nee  purior  ulla  est 

nee  magis  his  aliena  malis ;  nil  mi  officit,  inquam, 

ditior  hie  aut  est  quia  doctior ;  est  locus  uni 

cuique  suus.'     '  Magnum  narras,  vix  credibile ! '  '  Atqui 


suggestion  that  Horace  vehe- 
mently repudiates  in  Sat.  I,  6,  52 
ff. ;  fortuna  here  expresses  briefly 
what  is  there  emphasized  in  feli- 
cem,  casu,  sortitus,  fors.  But  the 
idea  in  dexterius  usus  is  an  addi- 
tion which  prepares  the  way  for 
the  proposal  in  the  next  sen- 
tence :  (  you  have  shown  your- 
self a  skillful  wire-puller;  now 
bring  me  into  the  game  to  help 
you  and  you'll  complete  your 
victory.' 

[The  difficulty  which  all  com- 
mentators, beginning  with  the 
scholiasts,  have  felt  in  interpreting 
these  lines  and  in  assigning  them 
to  the  speakers  is  due,  I  think,  to 
the  fact  that  Horace  is  not  report- 
ing the  whole  conversation,  but  is 
giving  only  the  main  points,  omit- 
ting, especially  in  44  f.,  the  con- 
necting links  of  the  thought. 
This  is  a  favorite  method  with 
him  (e.g.  Sat.  I,  4,  52  ff.,  85  ff., 
I,. 6,  17-25)  and  it  suits  perfectly 
the  informal  style  of  the  Sermones, 
but  it  sometimes  leaves  the 
thought  insufficiently  expressed. 
In  this  passage,  between  the  de- 
sire to  suggest  the  subject  of  the 


remarks  and  the  desire  to  suppress 
the  details,  with  their  low  estimate 
of  Maecenas  and  of  himself,  he 
has  suppressed  too  much.] 

46.  secundas :   sc.  partes ;   the 
second  actor  on  the  stage  should 
support  the  leading  actor. 

47.  hunc  hominem :  colloquial 
forme;  with  jocular  purpose  like 
'  your  humble  servant,'  '  the  under- 
signed.'—  dispeream,  ni:  cf.  the 
line  of  Catullus,  quoted  above. 

48.  summosses :      =    summo- 
visses  •  cf.  surrexe,  73.    The  plupf. 
looks  forward  to  the  completion 
of  the  process. 

48-52.  This  is  the  longest 
speech  that  Horace  makes  in  the 
whole  conversation,  as  though  he 
felt  the  insinuations  in  44-48  to 
be  unbearable  without  the  most 
earnest  and  explicit  denial .  — 
aliena :  free  from ;  but  malis  is, 
grammatically,  a  dative.  —  in- 
quam :  /  tell  you ;  the  insertion 
of  this  in  the  midst  of  his  words 
adds  to  the  earnestness. 

52  f .  Magnum  .  .  .  credibile : 
the  offensive  incredulity  betrays 
the  character  of  the  speaker.  — 
Atqui  sic  habet :  it's  so,  anyhow. 


127 


>.  9.  53] 


HORATI 


sic  habet.'     '  Accendis,  quare  cupiam  magis  illi 
proximus  esse.'     'Velis  tantummodo:  quae  tua  virtus 

55      expugnabis  ;  et  est  qui  vinci  possit,  eoque 

difficilis  aditus  primes  habet.'     '  Haud  mihi  dero : 
muneribus  servos  corrumpam;  non,  hodie  si 
exclusus  fuero,  desistam  ;  tempora  quaeram, 
occurram  in  triviis,  deducam.     Nil  sine  magno 

60     vita  labore  dedit  mortalibus.'     Haec  dum  agit  ecce 
Fuscus  Aristius  occurrit,  mihi  carus  et  ilium 
qui  pulchre  nosset.     Consistimus.     '  Vnde  venis  et 
quo  tendis  ? '  rogat  et  respondet.     Vellere  coepi 
et  prensare  manu  lentissima  brachia,  nutans, 


After  permitting  himself  some 
warmth  of  expression,  Horace  falls 
back  upon  short  answers. 

54-56.  Velis  tantummodo:  you 
have  only  to  wish  it.  —  virtus : 
with  the  underlying  sense  of 'im- 
pudence,' •  pushing  determination.' 
Horace  represents  himself  as  re- 
turning from  the  earnestness  of 
48  ff.  and  the  curtness  of  52  f.  to 
the  ironical  attitude,  with  a  pleas- 
ant anticipation  of  seeing  Mae- 
cenas attacked  next.  To  further 
the  joke  he  adds  the  encouraging 
words  of  55  f. :  'if  you  find  that 
he  makes  it  a  little  hard  at  first, 
that  will  be  only  because  he  is 
conscious  of  his  weakness.' 

56.   dero:  =  deero. 

59  f .  deducam :  escort  him  from 
his  house  to  the  Forum,  a  mark 
of  respect  to  men  of  eminence. 
Cicero  mentions  deduct,  reduci 
among  the  attentions  paid  to  old 
men.  —  Nil  .  .  .  mortalibus :  a 


maxim  of  proverbial  philosophy, 
by  which  the  social  struggler  en- 
courages himself  to  renewed  efforts. 
61.  Fuscus  Aristius :  Carm.  I, 
22,  Integer  vitae  and  Epist.  i,  10, 
are  addressed  to  him.  He  is  men- 
tioned in  Sat.  i,  10,  83,  among 
Horace's  most  valued  friends. 
The  varying  tradition  of  the 
scholiasts  calls  him  graintnaticus 
(i.e.  a  literary  critic)  and  a  writer 
of  plays. 

62  f.   pulchre :    colloquial,   like 
belle,   valide,   miser e.  —  qui   .  .  . 
nosset :    a    characterizing   clause, 
parallel   to  the  adj.  carus ;  '  and 
perfectly  well  acquainted  with  my 
companion.'  —  Vnde  .  .  .  tendis: 
i.e.  the  usual  questions  are  asked 
and  answered.     So  Sat.  2,  4,  I, 
unde  et  quo  Catius  ? 

63  f.   vellere  :  to  pull  his  toga.  — 
lentissima:  unfeeling;  i.e.  Fuscus 
gave  no  sign  that  he  understood 
what  Horace  wanted. 


128 


SERMONES 


[i»9,7S 


65      distorquens  oculos,  ut  me  eriperet.     Male  salsus 
ridens  dissimulare  ,  meum  iecur  urere  bills. 
'  Certe  nescio  quid  secreto  velle  loqui  te 
aiebas  mecum.'     '  Memini  bene,  sed  meliore 
tempore  dicam  ;  hodie  tricesima  sabbata :  vin  tu 

70      curtis  ludaeis  oppedere  ?  '     '  Nulla  mihi,'  inquam, 
'religio  est.'    'At  mi;  sum  paulo  infirmior,  unus 
multorum.     Ignosces  ;  alias  loquar.'     Huncine  solera 
tarn  nigrum  surrexe  mihi !     Fugit  improbus  ac  me 
sub  cultro  linquit.     Casu  venit  obvius  illi 

75      adversarius,  et,  '  Quo  tu,  turpissime  ? '  magna 

65.   Male  salsus:  the  wretched      cesima  sabbata  to  be  an  invention 


joker.    The  Integer  vitae  is  evi- 
dence that  he  loved  a  joke. 

66.  ridens :  i.e.  with  the  exas- 
perating smile  of  a  friend  who 
perceived  nothing  unusual  in  the 
situation.  The  rest  of  the  line 
points  the  contrast ;  '  but  I,  for 
my  part,  was  in  a  perfect  fury.1  — 
iecur  .  .  .  bills :  the  supposed  seat 
of  the  emotions,  as  the  heart  in 
modern  times. 

68.  Memini   bene :     the   reply 
is  intended    to    show   that    Fus- 
cus     understood     perfectly     that 
Horace  was  inventing  the  engage- 
ment. 

69.  tricesima  sabbata  :  this  and 
the  illusion  to  circumcision  (cur- 
tis) show  a  surprising  knowledge 
on  Horace's  part  of  Jewish  cus- 
toms,  but   it    is   not  possible   to 
identify  this  with  any  known  Jew- 
ish feast.   Indeed,  it  would  increase 
the  humor  of  the  solemn  scruples 
of  Fuscus,  if  we  suppose  the  tri- 


of  the  moment. 

70  f.  oppedere :  insult.  —  Nuila 
.  .  .  religio :  in  the  eagerness  of 
desperation  Horace  is  willing  to 
declare  that  he  hasn't  a  single  re- 
ligious scruple. 

73.  surrexe  =  surrexisse\    the 
infin.  in  exclamation,  either  with 
or  without  -ne,  is  colloquial  and  is 
very  common  in  Terence. 

74.  sub  cultro :  like  a  helpless 
victim  under  the  uplifted  knife  of 
the  priest. 

75  ff.  adversarius  :  his  opponent 
in  the  suit  which  he  had  aban- 
doned, vs.  41.  If  a  party  to  a 
suit  failed  to  appear,  his  opponent 
could  summon  him  and,  calling 
upon  a  bystander  to  act  as  witness, 
could  take  him  by  force  into  court. 
The  law  of  the  XII  Tables  was  '  si 
in  ius  vocat,  ito,  ni  it  (if  he  does 
not  come),  antestamino  (call  a 
witness);  igitur,  em  (=  eum)  cap- 
ito.'  The  question  licet  antestari? 


HOR.  SAT.  —  9 


129 


I,  9,  76]  HORATI 

inclamat  voce,  et  '  Licet  antestari  ? '     Ego  vero 
oppono  auriculam.     Rapit  in  ius  ;  clamor  utrimque, 
undique  concursus.     Sic  me  servavit  Apollo. 

is  addressed  to  Horace  and  his  as-  78.   Apollo,  as  the  guardian  oi 

sent  was  expressed,  according  to  poetry    and    poets.      The    satire 

the  legal   procedure,  by  allowing  thus   closes   with  a    reminiscence 

the  other  person  to  touch  his  ear.  of  its  opening  lines,  nescio  quid 

The    short    sentences    hurry    the  meditans  nugarum. 
scene  to  its  conclusion. 


10 

There  are  many  allusions  in  this  satire  to  persons  and  events,  but 
none  sufficiently  definite  to  fix  the  date  of  composition.  Evidently  it 
was  written  after  Sat.  4  and  therefore  after  2,  7,  and  8,  somewhere 
between  38  B.C.  and  35.  The  large  circle  of  friends  whose  names  are 
mentioned  in  the  closing  lines  would  indicate  a  late  date,  and  the 
general  tone  is  that  of  an  epilogue  to  the  whole  collection,  as  the  first 
satire  is  an  introduction  to  the  whole.  This  interpretation  also  har- 
monizes with  the  last  line  of  the  satire  (see  notes). 

'  It  is  quite  true  that  I  said  that  Lucilius  was  a  rough  verse  writer. 
His  power  as  a  satirist  I  acknowledge,  but  that  alone  does  not  make  a 
poet.  Many  other  qualities  are  necessary  to  a  poetic  style,  brevity, 
variety,  wit,  such  polished  wit  as  is  found  in  the  Old  Comedy,  of  which, 
indeed,  some  of  my  critics  seem  never  to  have  heard.  The  mingling 
of  Greek  with  Latin  in  Lucilius  is  not  a  merit,  but  a  defect ;  no  serious 
Roman  writer  mixes  the  two  languages  or  writes  in  Greek  at  all. 

'  The  grand  style  I  leave  to  others  to  attempt,  successfully  or  not. 
My  aim  is  less  ambitious.  The  fields  of  comedy  and  tragedy,  of  epic 
and  bucolic  poetry,  are  well  occupied  and  I  have  turned  to  satire,  not, 
however,  to  be  the  rival  of  Lucilius  or  to  lessen  his  glory.  But  it  is 
true  that  I  have  mentioned  his  defects,  as  he  had  noticed  the  defects 
of  Ennius  and  Accius.  The  copiousness  of  Lucilius  and  his  lack  of 
finish  are  real  defects,  which,  if  he  were  writing  now,  he  would  himself 
perceive  and  correct. 

'For  finish  of  style  appeals  to  the  only  public  worth  considering. 
Hermogenes  may  not  like  my  work,  but  if  Plotius  and  Varius,  Maecenas 
and  Vergil,  approve,  I  need  no  other  defence  and  can  publish  this  book 
of  satires  without  misgivings.' 

130 


SERMONES  [i,  10 

In  the  fourth  satire  Horace  had  defended  himself  against  the  charge 
that  he  was  malicious  and  was  seeking  notoriety.  The  reply  was  in 
general  direct  and  convincing,  but  in  the  course  of  his  argument  he 
happened  to  say  (vss.  6-13)  that  his  prototype,  Lucilius,  had  written 
too  profusely  and  with  too  little  attention  to  finish.  This  chance  re- 
mark—  which  is  abundantly  justified  by  the  extant  fragments  of 
Lucilius  —  had  brought  upon  him  some  censure  from  that  school  of 
literary  critics  in  Rome  whose  cardinal  doctrine  was  the  excellence 
of  the  early  Latin  poetry,  and  had  at  the  same  time  exposed  him  to  the 
less  sincere  attacks  of  others  who  seized  the  opportunity  to  renew  their 
personal  and  unfriendly  criticisms.  This  satire  is  a  reply  to  both 
classes.  To  the  serious  admirers  of  early  Latin  poetry  he  replies  with 
a  serious  discussion  of  the  nature  and  causes  of  the  defects  of  Lucilius 
and  with  candid  praise  of  his  merits.  To  the  little  clique  of  personal 
enemies  he  scarcely  replies  at  all,  brushing  them  aside  with  contemptu- 
ous brevity  and  twitting  them  (17-19)  with  their  ignorance  of  the  very 
poetry  about  which  they  were  pretending  to  be  solicitous. 

Prefixed  to  the  text  of  this  satire  in  some  Mss.  are  eight  verses :  — < 

Lucili,  quam  sis  mendosus,  teste  Catone, 

defensore  tuo,  pervincam,  qui  male  factos 

emendare  parat  versos ;  hoc  lenius  ille, 

quo  vir  est  melior,  longe  subtilior  illo, 

qui  multum  puer  et  loris  et  funibus  udis 

exhortatus,  ut  esset  opem  qui  ferre  poetis 

antiquis  posset  contra  fastidia  nostra, 

grammaticorum  equitum  doctissimus.    Vt  redeam  illuc : 

These  lines  contain  Horatian  phrases  (cf.  loris  et  funibus  with 
Epod.  4,  3,  Epist.  I,  16,  47)  and  opinions  (cf.  vs.  7  with  Epist.  2,  I, 
1 8  ff.)  ;  the  reference  to  P.  Valerius  Cato,  though  not  exactly  identical 
with  the  statement  in  Sueton.  de  Gram.  2,  is  a  similar  bit  cf  gram- 
matical tradition ;  the  satirical  allusion  in  vss.  5  fF.  is  obscure  and  con- 
tradictory, but  comes  evidently  from  the  same  school  of  literary  and 
personal  gossip ;  the  phrasing  is  stiff  (hoc  lenius  tile,  ille  and  illo  refer- 
ring to  different  persons,  the  apposition  of  doctissimus  \.Q  gut),  and  the 
joining  of  the  lines  to  vs.  I  of  the  satire  by  the  words  ut  redeam  illuc  is 
very  awkward.  These  facts  all  point  to  one  conclusion,  that  the  verses 
were  written  by  a  grammarian  who  saw  in  the  abruptness  of  nempe  dixi 
an  opportunity  to  perpetuate  a  bit  of  his  own  learned  satire  by  prefixing 
it  to  the  text  of  Horace. 

13* 


1,  10,  I] 


ITORATI 


Nempe  incomposito  dixi  pede  currere  versus 

Lucili.     Quis  tarn  Lucili  fautor  inepte  est 

ut  non  hoc  f ateatur  ?     At  idem,  quod  sale  multo 

urbem  defricuit,  charta  laudatur  eadem. 

Nee    tamen,  hoc    tribuens,  dederim    quoque    cetera; 

nam  sic 

et  Laberi  mimos  ut  pulchra  poemata  mirer. 
Ergo  non  satis  est  risu  diducere  rictum 


1.  Nempc :  yes,  I  did  say,  with 
intentional    abruptness,  as    if   in 
immediate    reply    to    a    critic. — 
incomposito    .  .  .    pede    currere : 
the  exact  words  are  durus  com- 
ponere  versus,  Sat.  i,  4,   8,   and 
cum  flueret  lutulentus,  i,  4,  u. 

2.  fautor:  with  a  tinge  of  the 
meaning  that  it  has   in  Plautus, 
Amph.   67,  78,   claqueur,  a   man 
hired  to  applaud  in  the  theater,  so 
partisan.      As  a  verbal  noun  in 
combination  with  est  it  takes  the 
adv.  inepte.  —  tarn :  with  inepte. 

3  f.  idem  .  .  .  eadem :  empha- 
sizing the  adversative  connection 
expressed  in  at]  so  in  English 
but  at  the  same  time.  —  sale  multo 
defricuit .  .  .  scoured  down  the  city 
with  strong  brine.  Individually 
the  words  are  to  be  taken  in  their 
literal  sense,  but  the  phrase  as  a 
whole  implies  the  common  com- 
parison of  wit  to  salt. — charta:  i.e. 
in  the  same  satire ;  cf.  Sat.  \,  5, 
104  and  membrana,  Sat.  2,  3,  2. 

5.  sic :    on  that  principle,    by 
such    reasoning,    i.e.    if    it    were 
granted  that  wit  alone  made  poetry. 

6.  Laberi :    Decimus    Laberius 


was  a  knight,  who  had  died  some 
ten  years  before  the  date  of  this 
satire.  He  was  one  of  two  or 
three  successful  writers  of  mimes, 
popular  farces  which  were  put 
into  literary  form  in  the  Cicero- 
nian period.  About  150  lines  or 
fragments  from  Laberius  are  pre- 
served (see  Ribbeck,  Com.  Rom. 
Fragm?,  pp.  279  ff.),  including  a 
large  part  of  the  prologue  spoken 
by  Laberius  when  he  was  com- 
pelled by  Caesar  to  act  in  one  of 
his  own  farces.  Some  of  the  lines 
of  this  are  well  known :  — 

Ego  bis  tricenis  annis  actis  sfne  nota 
Eques  Romanus  e  Lare  egressus 

meo 
Domtim  revertar  mi'mus. 

Necesse  est  multostfmeat  quern  multf 
timent. 

But  such  farces  were  of  course 
not  ptilchra  poemata. 

7.  Ergo :  the  mere  mention  ot 
Laberius  is  enough  to  prove  that 
witty  verse  is  not  necessarily 
poetry.  —  diducere  rictum :  a 
slightly  contemptuous  colloquial- 
ism ;  to  make  your  hearer  grin. 


132 


SERMONES 


10,  14 


auditoris  —  et  est  quaedam  tamen  hie  quoque  virtus ; 
est  brevitate  opus,  ut  currat  sententia  neu  se 
impediat  verbis  lassas  onerantibus  auris ; 
et  sermone  opus  est  modo  tristi,  saepe  iocoso, 
defendente  vicem  modo  rhetoris  atque  poetae, 
interdum  urbani,  parcentis  viribus  atque 
extenuantis  eas  consulto.     Ridiculum  acri 


nence  both  by  the  definition  par- 
cent's,  extenuantis,  and  by  the 
carrying  over  of  the  thought  into 
the  next  sentence.  The  reference 
to  the  Old  Comedy,  as  a  standard 
of  polished  wit,  is  then  used  to 
clinch  the  argument,  as  in  Sat. 
i,  4  it  had  been  used  to  open 
it. 

9.  brevitate:  that  condensation 
of  style  which  is  secured  by  the 
selection  of  words  that  carry  the 
meaning  adequately  (ut  currat 
sententia)  and  by  the  avoidance  of 
commonplace  and  meaningless 
phrases.  The  quality  is  admir- 
ably exemplified  by  Horace  in  the 
Odes,e.g.  1,5;  1,24;  1,31. 

12.  defendente  vicem :  playing 
the  part,  using  the  dignified  and 
serious  style  of  the  orator  or  poet. 
Horace  has  also  partes  defendere, 
A.  P.  193  f,,  and  vice  fungi,  A.  P. 
304.     Strictly    defendente    should 
agree,  not  with  sermone  but  with 
some  word  like  scriptore. 

13.  urbani :     first    used    as    a 
technical    term     of    rhetoric     bj 
Cicero.  —  parcentis    viribus  :     ex- 
pressed in  Epist.  i,  9,  9  by  dissi- 
mulator opis  propriae. 


-r  .  .  virtus :  a  concession 
in  ihe  form  of  a  parenthetic 
statement. 

9  ff.  In  these  lines  Horace 
again  discusses  the  nature  of  satire, 
as  he  had  already  done  in  Sat. 
1,4,39-61.  This  argument,  how- 
ever, since  its  main  purpose  is  to 
justify  the  criticism  of  Lucilius, 
is  less  general  and  only  those 
qualities  are  mentioned  in  which 
it  is  implied  that  Lucilius  was 
lacking.  These  are  specifications 
under  the  general  statement  durus 
componere  versus  and  are,  in  form, 
two  in  number  —  brevity  and  va- 
riety. But  the  idea  of  variety  is 
expressed  by  contrasting  two 
styles,  the  serious  and  the  light, 
and  the  contrast  is  carried  on 
through  vs.  15;  in  a  very  gen- 
eral way  tristi,  rhetoris  atque 
poetae  and  acri  express  one  side, 
and  wcoso,  urbani,  and  ridiculum 
the  other.  The  implication,  how- 
ever, is  not  merely  that  Lucilius 
was  monotonous,  but  also  and  es- 
pecially that  he  lacked  the  lighter 
and  more  polished  forms  of  wit. 
The  quality  of  urbanitas  is  there- 
fore brought  into  greater  promi- 


133 


I,  ">,  15] 


HORATI 


fortius  et  melius  magnas  plerumque  secat  res. 
Illi,  scripta  quibus  comoedia  prisca  viris  est, 
hoc  stabant,  hoc  sunt  imitandi ;  quos  neque  pulcher 
Hermogenes  umquam  legit,  neque  simius  iste 
nil  praeter  Calvum  et  doctus  cantare  Catullum. 
'  At  magnum  fecit,  quod  verbis  Graeca  Latinis 
miscuit.'     O  seri  studiorum  !  quine  putetis 
difficile  et  mirum,  Rhodio  quod  Pitholeonti 


15.  secat :  decides,  settles.    Cic- 
ero, expressing  the  same  thought 
(lie  Oral.  2,  58, 236),  \\sesdtssolvit. 

16.  An  intentional  repetition  of 
i,  4,   2,   in  order  to  remind   the 
reader  that  Horace  is  maintaining 
the  opinion  there  expressed. 

17  ff.  'But  the  men  who  are 
pretending  to  be  so  disturbed  by 
my  criticism  of  Lucilius  know 
nothing  of  the  best  standards  or 
even  of  the  earlier  Latin  writers.' 

—  pulcher :  the  point  of  applying 
this    adj.    to   Hermogenes  is    not 
known,  but  it  is  meant  to  contrast 
with  simius.  —  simius:    the  scho- 
liast says  that  this  is  Demetrius, 
mentioned  also  in  vs.  90. 

19.  Calvum:  C.  Licinius  Cal- 
vus,  the  orator  and  poet,  an  in- 
timate friend  of  Catullus.  He  had 
a  high,  perhaps  an  exaggerated, 
reputation  with  his  contemporaries. 

—  Catullum :  C.  Valerius  Catullus, 
one  of  the  four  great  Roman  poets, 
inferior  to  Horace   in  sanity  and 
judgment,  but   superior  in   spon- 
taneity  and   brilliancy.      This   is 
the  only  allusion  to  him  in  Horace, 
and,    while    the   contempt  is  di- 


rected against  simius  iste,  it  can- 
not be  denied  that  the  allusion  is 
slighting  in  tone. 

20.  Graeca  Latinis :  to  judge  by 
the  extant  fragments  the  Greek 
words  are  sometimes  technical 
terms,  sometimes  quotations,  and 
only  occasionally  used  for  comic 
effect.  Lucilius  himself  ridicules 
the  use  of  Greek  words  in  common 
conversation  (vss.  88-94,  Marx). 

21.  seri  studiorum :  a  translation 
of  ci/a^uta^eis,  men  who  have  just 
learned  something  that  everybody 
else  has  known  before   and  who 
parade    their    new   knowledge.  — 
qui-ne  :  nom.plur.  The  appending 
of  -ne  to  a  relative  is   not  unfre- 
quent.     Translate   oh,  pedants,  to 
think  ...     [I  will  not  add  to  the 
mass  of  commentary  on  this  pas- 
sage, but  will  refer  to  A.J.P.  XI,  I 
(41),  pp.  17-19,  and  Schmalz,  B. 
Ph.  W.,  1907,  Sp.  1292.] 

22.  Pitholeonti :  probably  Pith- 
olaus,  a  barely   known   writer  of 
epigrams.      The  context  supplies 
all  that  is  necessary  to  understand 
the  point  ;  he  used  Greek  words 
in  his  verse  and  yet  was  so  poor  a 


134 


SERMON ES 


[i,  10,  29 


contigit  ?     '  At  sermo  lingua  concinnus  utraque 
suavior,  ut  Chio  nota  si  commixta  Falerni  est' 
25      Cum  versus  facias,  te  ipsum  percenter,  an  et  cum 
dura  tibi  peragenda  rei  sit  causa  Petilli  ? 
scilicet  oblitus  patriaeque  patrisque  Latini 
(mm  Pedius  causas  exsudet  Poplicola  atque 
Cbrvinus,  patriis  intermiscere  petita 


poet  that  the  mere  mention  of  his 
name  is  an  argument.  Cf.  the 
similar  condensed  argument  in 
vs.  6. 

23  f.  concinnus :  blended ;  the 
word  anticipates  the  following 
comparison.  —  nota:  label,  brand ; 
the  mark  attached  to  the  amphora 
to  tell  the  vintage.  —  Chio,  Falerni : 
a  slight  flavor  of  the  sweet  Greek 
wines  was  thought  to  improve  the 
native  Falernian  ;  cf.  Carm.  i,  20, 
2  f.,  where  Horace  speaks  of  put- 
ting his  wine  into  a  jug  that  had 
held  Greek  wine. 

25  f.  '  Are  you  not  thinking  too 
exclusively  of  verse  writing  ? 
Would  you  mix  Greek  with  Latin 
if  you  were  arguing  a  difficult  case 
at  law  ? '  That  is,  the  use  of  an 
occasional  Greek  word  is  an  arti- 
fice of  style  which  no  one  would 
employ  in  serious  speech ;  cf. 
•vicem  rhetor  is,  vs.  12.  —  versus 
facias :  in  your  verse  making,  with 
a  slight  tone  of  depreciation.  The 
subjv.  is  used  because  the  omitted 
main  clause  would  be  subjv.,  — 
num  sermo  .  .  .  suavior  sit.  — 
causa  Petilli:  see  note  on  Sat.  I, 
4,94- 


27.  patrisque  Latini :  Father  La- 
tinus,  from  whom  our  language 
gets  its  name.  Cf.  the  reference 
to  Quirinus,  vs.  32. 

28.  Pedius  Poplicola :  perhaps  a 
brother  of  Messalla  (vs.  85),  who 
had  been  adopted  by  Q.  Pedius, 
a  nephew  of  Julius  Caesar.      Al- 
most  nothing  is   known   of  him, 
but  Horace  uses  him   here   as   a 
type  of  the  great  lawyer. 

29.  Corvinus  :  M.  Valerius  Mes- 
salla Corvinus,  the   friend   of  Ti- 
bullus  and  one  of  the   important 
personages  of  the  Augustus  period, 
distinguished  as  an  orator.     It  is 
known  that  he  took  special  pains 
(exsudet}  to  preserve  a  pure  Latin 
style,  excluding  Greek  derivatives. 
—  intermiscere ;      to     thrust     in 
anting.     This  is  the  proper  mean- 
ing (A  intermiscere  with  the  dative, 
not    merely   to  mix  together;  cf. 
Verg.  Kd.  10,  5,  sic  tibi,  .  .  .  Doris 
amara  suam  non  intermisceat  un- 
dam,  '  not  intermingle  her  waters 
with  yours'  ;  Livy,  4,  56,  3  ;  10, 
20,  8.     The  sense  is,  '  would  you 
actually  be  so  forgetful  of  the  very 
name  of  your  country  that,  when 
Pedius  and  Corvinus  are  working 


J35 


I.  10.  3°] 


HORATI 


30     verba  foris  malis,  Canusini  more  bilinguis  ? 

atque  ego  cum  Graecos  facerem,  natus  mare  citra, 
versiculos,  vetuit  me  tali  voce  Quirinus, 
post  mediam  noctem  visus,  cum  somnia  vera  : 
'  In  silvam  non  ligna  feras  insanius,  ac  si 

35      magnas  Graecorum  malis  implere  catervas.' 

Turgidus  Alpinus  iugulat  dum  Memnona,  dumque 
defingit  Rheni  luteum  caput,  haec  ego  ludo, 
quae  neque  in  aede  sonent  certantia  iudice  Tarpa, 


out  a  speech  in  pure  Latin,  you 
would  wish  to  thrust  in  among 
their  native  words  (patrtis)  your 
imported  Greek  phrases  (fetita 
verba  foris)  ? '  [This  gives  the 
sense  which  Bentley,  interpreting 
the  passage  correctly,  but  not  dis- 
tinguishing intermisceo  with  the 
dat.  from  misceo,  sought  to  get  by 
supplying  eos.~\ 

30.  foris  :  from  abroad,  from  the 
Greek.  —  Canusini    bilinguis:     at 
Canusium  and  in  Apulia  generally 
both  Greek  and  Latin  (or,  earlier, 
Oscan)  were  native  languages,  as 
both  German  and  French  are  na- 
tive in  parts  of  Switzerland.     This 
seemed  odd  to  a  Roman,  who  was 
obliged  to  learn  Greek  in  school ; 
probably,   also,    neither  language 
was  spoken  in  strict  purity. 

31.  atque    ego:    'I     too     once 
thought  of  making  Greek  verses, 
but  Quirinus  forbade  it.'  —  Quiri- 
nus :  the  deified  Romulus,  as  head 
of  the  Roman   race.     Cf.  Latini, 
vs.  27. 

33.    cum   somnia  vera :    this  su- 
perstition is  often  referred  to. 


34.  In  silvam  .  .  .  ligna :  prover- 
bial, like  yXavK  es  'Afli/ras,  '  carry- 
ing coals  to  Newcastle.'  —  ac  si: 
than  if. 

36  ff.  The  connection  of  thought 
is  somewhat  elliptical ;  '  giving  up 
Greek,  therefore,  and  leaving  to 
others  their  high  and  mighty  epics, 
I  turn  to  a  humbler  style.'  — 
Alpinus :  this  satirical  side-stroke 
would  have  been  immediately  in- 
telligible to  Horace's  contempora- 
ries. Probably  Alpinus  is  a  nick- 
name for  M.  Furius  Bibaculus,  the 
author  of  a  poem  on  Gaul  from 
which  the  bombastic  line  [ftippi- 
ter\,  hibernas  cana  nive  conspuit 
Alpis  is  quoted,  Sat.  2,  5,  41.  He 
wrote  also  an  epic  which  included 
the  killing  of  Memnon  by  Achilles, 
here  alluded  to  with  a  play  upon 
the  double  meaning  of  tttgitlat, 
'murders.'  The  phrase  defingit .  .  . 
caput, '  misshapes  the  muddy  head 
of  the  Rhine,'  contains  a  similar 
play  upon  some  passage  in  the  poem 
on  Gaul,  but  the  point  is  lost  to  us. 

38.  aede :  called  by  the  scholi- 
asts aedes  Musarum^  a  temple  in 


136 


SERMONES 


[1,  10,  45 


nec  redeant  iterum  atque  iterum  spectanda  theatris. 

40      Arguta  meretrice  potes  Davoque  Chremeta 
eludente  senem  comis  garrire  libellos 
unus  vivorum,  Fundani ;  Pollio  regum 
facia  canit  pede  ter  percusso  ;  forte  epos  acer, 
ut  nehiQj  Varius  ducit ;  molle  atque  facetum 

45      Vergilio  adnuerunt  gaudentes  rure  Camenae. 


which  Sp.  Maecius  Tarpa,  perhaps 
as  public  censor  of  plays  and  as 
head  of  the  collegium  poetarum, 
passed  judgment  upon  new  poetry. 
Tarpa  is  referred  to  with  respect 
in  Ars  Poet.  387.  —  sonent:  re- 
sound, as  the  poets  read  aloud 
their  own  verses;  cf.  I,  4,  76. 

40 ff.  'Other  fields  were  already 
occupied,  but  satire  was  open  to 
me.' 

40  f.  meretrice,  Davo,  Chremeta : 
typical  figures  in  comedy ;  the 
commonest  plot  in  Plautus  and 
Terence  is  one  in  which  a  young 
man's  confidential  slave  {Davus) 
with  the  help  of  his  mistress 
(mtretrix)  deceives  the  father 
{Chremeta  senem).  The  ablatives 
go  with  eludente,  of  which  Chre- 
meta is  the  object. — comis  libel- 
los :  ace.  of  the  inner  object  after 
garrirt, 

42.  Fundani:  unknown  except 
by  the  references  to  him  in  Sat. 
2,8. — Pollio:  C.  Asinius  Pollio, 
statesman,  orator,  and  poet,  one  of 
the  most  distinguished  men  of  his 
time.  Vergil  dedicated  the  Fourth 
Eclogue  to  him,  and  Horace  ad- 
dressed to  him  one  of  his  finest 


odes  {Car  m.  2,  i).  His  writings 
are  all  lost,  but  his  history  of  the 
Civil  Wars  was  famous,  and  the 
tragedies  here  alluded  to  were 
highly  esteemed. 

43.  pede  ter  percusso :    iambic 
trimeter,    the    ordinary    verse    of 
tragedy,  which  has  the  heavy  ictus 
on  the  first,  third  and  fifth  feet. 
—  forte,  acer:  the   two  adjectives 
express  the  same  quality  from  two 
sides,   the  power  of  epic    poetry 
and  the  lofty  spirit  of  the  epic 
writer. 

44.  ducit :  shapes,  fashions,  used 
of  the  work  of  the  artist  or  poet. 
The   three   verbs,  garrire,  canit, 
ducit,    are    carefully    selected.  — 
molle  atque  facetum :   tenderness 
and   elegance.      On  facetum    cf. 
Sat.  i,  4,  7  n.     Vergil  had  not  yet 
written  the  Aeneid  nor  published 
the  Georgics ;  he  was  the  poet  of 
the     Eclogues    and    of    the    still 
lighter   poems,  which,  with  more 
or  less  doubt  of  their  authentic- 
ity, have  come  down  to  us  under 
his  name. 

45.  adnuSrunt  :  with  short 
penult,  as  in  a  few  places  in 
Vergil. 


137 


I,  10,  46] 


HORATI 


Hoc  erat,  experto  frustra  Varrone  Atacino 
atque  quibusdam  aliis,  melius  quod  scribere  possem, 
inventore  minor ;  neque  ego  illi  detrahere  ausim 
haerentem  capiti  cum  multa  laude  coronam. 

At  dixi  fluere  hunc  lutulentum,  saepe  ferentem 
plura  quidem  tollenda  relinquendis.     Age,  quaeso, 
tu  nihil  in  magno  doctus  reprehendis  Homero  ? 
nil  comis  tragic!  mutat  Lucilius  Acci  ? 


46.  Hoc:  satire.  —  Varrone:  M. 
Terentius  Varro,  called  Atacinus 
from  the  river  Atax,  in  southern 
Gaul,  where  he  was  born,  to  dis- 
tinguish him  from  the  great  anti- 
quarian and  scholar  of  the  same 
name.     He  wrote  in  several  styles, 
but   without   marked    success   in 
any. 

47.  quibusdam  aliis :    it  is   not 
to  be  supposed  that  Horace  stood 
alone    in    writing    satire    in    the 
Augustan  period;    the  names  of 
some  of  the  alii  are  known,  but 
all  knowledge  of  their  writings  is 
lost. 

48  f.  inventore  minor:  conces- 
sive ;  '  even  though  I  fall  short  of 
Lucilius.'  It  was  an  accepted 
doctrine  of  literary  history  that 
Lucilius  was  the  inventor  of  satire, 
that  is,  was  the  first  to  put  it  into 
hexameter  and  give  it  the  distinct 
form  which  it  thereafter  retained. 
—  The  thought  of  these  verses,  48- 
49,  is  connected  with  the  preced- 
ing, hoc  erat  .  .  .  possem,  as  if  it 
was  a  natural  consequence  of  his 
choice  of  satire.  If  it  had  been 
put  into  a  separate  sentence,  it 


would  have  been  strongly  adver- 
sative ;  '  but  I  do  not  claim  to  be 
his  equal  nor  desire  to  lessen  his 
credit.1 

50  f.  At  dixi :  repeating  with  em- 
phasis dixi  of  vs.  i. — fluere:  the 
figure  used  in  i,  4,  n,  as  tollenda 
repeats  erat  quod  toller e  velles.  — 
relinquendis :  abl.  after  the  corn- 
par,  plura.  The  rubbish  seemed 
often  more  in  amount  than  the 
water  which  swept  it  along.  But 
the  figure  is  not  very  clearly  con- 
ceived. 

52.  doctus  :  with  all  your  learn- 
ing; the  word   frequently  implies 
a  slur.       The    Alexandrians    and 
their  followers  (the  doctt)  criticized 
Homer  freely. 

53.  comis :  genial,  kindly.     The 
word  is  used  as  if  it  were  quoted 
from  the  admirers  of  Lucilius,  as 
below,    vs.    65,    and    is   selected 
for     the     partial     contrast     with 
tragid.  —  mutat  :      not     actually, 
but      by      implication.  —  Acci : 
L.     Accius,   the    greatest   of   the 
early   writers    of  tragedy.      Only 
fragments   of  his   works   are    ex- 
tant. 


138 


SERMONES 


[i,  10,  64 


nonjidet  versus  Enni  gravitate  minores, 
55      cum  de  se  loquitur  non  ut  maiore  reprensis  ? 
Quid  vetat  et  nosmet  Lucili  scripta  legentis 
quaerere,  num  illius,  num  rerum  dura  negarit 
versiculos  natura  magis  factos  et  euntis 
mollius,  ac  si  quis,  pedibus  quid  claudere  senis, 
60      hoc  tantum  contentus,  amet  scripsisse  ducentos 
ante  cibum  versus,  totidem  cenatus ;  Etrusci 
quale  fuit  Cassi  rapido  ferventius  amni 
ingenium,  capsis  quem  fama  est  esse  librisque 
ambustum  propriis.     Fuerit  Lucilius,  inquam, 


54  f.  gravitate  minores :  as 
inferior  in  dignity,  less  dignified 
than  the  subject-matter  demanded. 
The  unrhythmical  verse  sparsis 
hash's  longis  campus  splendet  et 
horret  Lucilius  proposed  to  change 
to  horret  et  alget.  —  cum  .  .  . 
loquitur  :  while  at  the  same  time 
he  claims  no  superiority  for  him- 
self. —  reprensis  :  than  those  whom 
he  criticized,  Accius  and  Ennius. 

57.  quaerere:  the  simplest  con- 
clusion   of    the  argument    would 
have  been  something  like  Lucilium 
reprehendere,  but  that  is  expanded 
and  at  the  same  time  made  milder 
by     substituting    quaerere     with 
its   dependent   questions.  —  num 
.  .  .  num :  parallel  questions,  not 
alternativ2.  — •  rerum  :  in  the  most 
general    meaning,    circumstances, 
including  his  difficult  subject-mat- 
ter and   the   imperfection   of  his 
times  in  verse-writing. 

58.  magis   factos :     more  pol- 
ished; factus    is    used    in    this 


sense  by  Cicero  (de  Orat.  3,  48, 
184;  Brut.  30)  with  a  slight 
apology  for  the  novelty  of  the 
use. 

59  f.  ac  si  quis  .  .  .  contentus : 
'  than  a  man  would  write  if,  con- 
tent with  merely  getting  what  he 
had  to  say  within  six  feet,  he  was 
in  a  hurry  to  .  .  .'  — -  pedibus 
senis :  a  hexameter,  i.e.  merely 
making  a  verse  that  would  scan. 
So  in  I,  4,  40,  concludere  versum. 
—  claudere:  appos.  of  hoc. 

61.  ante  cibum  .  .  .  cenatus : 
a  humorous  variant  upon  stans 
pede  in  uno,  I,  4,  10. 

62  f .  Cassi :  nothing  is  known 
of  him  except  what  is  implied  here, 
that  he  was  so  prolific  that  his 
books  and  their  cases  (capsis) 
were  sufficient  for  his  funeral 
pile. 

64.  Fuerit :  suppose  that  Lu- 
cilius was,  i.e.  'granting,  for 
the  moment,  that  Lucilius  was  all 
you  claim,  genial  and  witty.' 


139 


•I,  10,65] 


HORATI 


65      comis  et  urbanus,  fuerit  limatior  idem 

quam  rudis  et  Graecis  intacti  carminis  auctor, 
quamque  poetarum  seniorum  turba  ;  sed  ille, 
si  foret  hoc  nostrum  fato  dilatus  in  aevum, 
detereret  sibi  multa,  recideret  omne  quod  ultra 

70     perfectum  traheretur,  et  in  versu  f aciendo 
saepe  caput  scaberet,  vivos  et  roderet  unguis. 
Saepe  stilum  vertas,  iterum  quae  digna  legi  sint 


65.  comis    et    urbanus :    these 
words  describe   one  quality  from 
two  sides  and  are,  like  comis  in 
vs.    53,    a     quotation ;    they    are 
admitted  with  reserve,  having  been 
already  denied  by  implication  (vs. 
13),  in  order  to   show  that  they 
would     not     disprove     Horace's 
criticism. 

66.  quam    .    .    .    auctor:    the 
thought    is    altogether    general ; 
carmen  is  not  satire  and  the  auctor 
is  not  Lucilius   or   Ennius.     The 
statement  of  Quintilian  (10,1,93), 
satira   tota   nostra   est,    is,   in    a 
way,  correct,  but  it  represents  an 
entirely  different  literary  tradition 
from  that  which  Horace  is  follow- 
ing.    His  doctrine,  expressed  with 
an  even  exaggerated  emphasis  in  I, 
4, 1-6,  was  that  satire  came  directly 
from  the  Greeks  of  the  Old  Comedy ; 
in  fact,  the  error  of  underestimating 
the  force  and  value  of  the  purely 
Italic  influences  runs  through  all 
his  literary  criticism.      With   the 
opening  words  of  i,  4  in  mind  — 
and  they  are  distinctly  in  his  mind 
all  through  this  satire  —  he  could 
not    have   called   satire   rude    et 


Graecis  intact  urn  carmen.  The 
thought  is  quite  different :  '  Lu- 
cilius did  not  invent  satire  out 
of  nothing ;  the  way  had  been 
already  prepared  by  the  Greeks 
and  he  learned  from  them.  I 
grant,  therefore,  that  he  had  a 
certain  degree  of  polish,  more,  of 
course,  than  a  writer  composing 
some  entirely  new  (rude)  kind  of 
poetry,  some  poetry  untouched  by 
the  Greeks,  would  have  had,  more 
even  than  the  early  poets  gener- 
ally, but  if  he  had  lived  .  .  .' 

67.  seniorum \senex is  frequently 
used  of  the  early  Latin  writers.  — 
ille :  emphatic. 

68.  nostrum  dilatus  in  aevum : 
prolonged  in  life  down  to  our  time. 
So     Ovid,   M.    12,    76,   decimum 
dilatus  in  annum  Hector  erat. 

69.  detereret :    would  file    off 
many     roughnesses;     the     same 
figure  as  that  in  limatior.  —  omne 
quod  ultra :  i.e.  the  plura  tollenda 
of  vs.  51. 

72  ff.  From  the  completed  ar- 
gument in  support  of  his  criticism 
of  Lucilius,  Horace  turns  first  to  a 
general  truth  and  then  to  his 


140 


SERMONES 


79 


75 


scripturu*,  neque  te  ut  miretur  turba  labores, 
conte/nfus  paucis  lectoribus.     An  tua  demens 
vilibus  in  ludis  dictari  carmina  mails? 
non  ego ;  nam  satis  est   equitem    mihi   plaudere,  ut 

audax, 

contemptis  aliis,  explosa  Arbuscula  dixit. 
Men'  rnoveat  cimex  Pantilius,  aut  cruciet  quod 
vellicet  absentem  Demetrius,  aut  quod  ineptus 


less  worthy  assailants,  Hermogenes 
and  his  friends. 

72.  stilum  vertas :     the   blunt 
upper  end  of  the  stilus  was  used  to 
smooth  out  the  marks  made  in  the 
wax  of  a  tablet,  as  a  lead-pencil  is 
reversed  to  use  the  eraser. 

73.  scripturus :  with  the  effect 
of  a  condition  ;  if  you  hope  to  write. 

74.  contentus :   continuing  the 
advice  ;  but  be  content  with. 

75.  vilibus  .  .  .  dictari :  poetry 
to  be  learned  was  dictated  by  the 
teacher  and  taken   down  by   the 
pupils.       So     Orbilius     dictated 
Livius    Andronicus    to     Horace, 
Epist.  2,  i,  70  f.  and  Vergil  and 
Horace  were  in  the  curriculum  of 
schools   in   the    time   of  Juvenal 
(7,  226  f.).     Horace,  of  course,  did 
not,  as  is  sometimes  said,  '  dread 
this  fate  1 ;  he  is  merely  saying  in 
a  humorous  way,   '  do  not  aim  at 
popularity  ;   don't  try  to  be  one  of 
the  "  best  sellers."  ' 

76.  equitem:  the  educated  class  ; 
so   Epist.   2,   i,  187.     It  is  quite 
possible,  too,  that  the  word  would 
be    taken     as    a     complimentary 
reference  to  Maecenas.  —  audax  : 


undismayed  by    the    disapproval 
expressed  by  the  crowd.  . 

77.  Arbuscula :     an   actress  in 
mimes  like  those  of  Laberius  (vs. 
6).     Cicero   wrote   to   Atticus  in 
54  B.C.,  qriaeris  nunc  de  Arbus- 
cula ;  valde  placuit  (4,  15,  6). 

78.  cimex :  as  this  is  not  used 
by  us  as   a   term  of  reproach,   a 
modern  equivalent,  beast,   reptile, 
may  be   substituted.  —  Pantilius  : 
unknown ;  but  the  name  actually 
occurs   and     there     is     no    good 
reason     for     connecting    it    with 
TTO.V  rLX.Xf.LV  or  supposing  it  to  be 
fictitious.  —  cruciet:    the   subj.    is 
quod  vellicet. 

79  ff.  Demetrius  is  unknown  ; 
cf.  vs.  1 8.  Most  of  the  other 
names  in  this  list  have  been  men- 
tioned before  :  Fannius,  I,  4,  21  ; 
Hermogenes,  I,  3,  4;  Plotius,  i, 
5,40;  Varius,  i,  5,  40;  Fuscus,  i, 
9,  61  ;  Viscus,  I,  9,  22  ;  Pollio,  vs. 
42 ;  Messalla,  vs.  29.  Of  the 
others,  C.  Valgius  Rufus  was  an 
elegiac  poet  and  a  friend  to  whom 
Horace  addressed  Carm.  2,  9. 
Octavius  Musa  (the  emperor  is 
called  by  Horace  either  Caesar  or 


141 


I,  10,  80] 


HORATI 


80      Fannius  Hermogenis  laedat  conviva  Tigelli  ? 
Plotius  et  Varius,  Maecenas  Vergiliusque, 
Valgius,  et  probet  haec  Octavius,  optiraus  atque 
Fuscus,  et  haec  utinam  Viscorum  laudet  uterque ! 
Ambitione  relegata  te  dicere  possum, 

85      Pollio,  te,  Messalla,  tuo  cum  fratre,  simulque 
vos,  Bibule  et  Servi,  simul  his  te,  candide  Furni, 
compluris  alios,  doctos  ego  quos  et  amicos 
prudens  praetereo  ;    quibus  haec,  sint  qualiacumque, 
arridere  velim,  doliturus  si  placeant  spe 

90      deterius  nostra.     Demetri,  teque,  Tigelli, 
discipularum  inter  iubeo  plorare  cathedras. 
I,  puer,  atque  meo  citus  haec  subscribe  libello. 


Augustus)  was  a  poet  and  his- 
torian, mentioned  in  the  Catalecta, 
14,  i.  Bibulus  is  probably  L. 
Calpurnius  Bibulus,  a  son  of 
Caesar's  colleague  in  the  consul- 
ship and  a  fellow-student  with 
Horace  in  Athens.  Servius  may 
be  a  son  of  Servius  Sulpicius 
Rufus,  referred  to  several  times  by 
Cicero.  C.  Furnius  is  mentioned 
by  Plutarch  as  an  orator. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that,  with 
scarcely  an  exception,  all  the  men 
here  named  as  friends  are  of  suffi- 
cient importance  to  be  referred  to 
by  other  writers  than  Horace. 

84.  ambitione  relegata:  with- 
out flattery,  without  fear  that  he 
may  be  suspected  of  boasting;  the 
phrase  is  put  in  here  because  the 
men  whose  names  follow  were  all 
of  high  rank  and  social  standing. 

86.  simul :  here  used  as  a  prep- 
governing  his. 


87.  doctos :  good  critics,  with- 
out the   slur  which  doctus  often 
implies. 

88.  prudens :    intentionally,  to 
avoid  too  long  a  list.  —  sint  quali- 
acumque :  perhaps  a  reminiscence 
of  Catull.    I,   8    f.,  quidquid  hoc 
libelli,  qualecumque . 

89.  arridere:    be  pleasing',    cf. 
Carm.    2,  6,  13   f.,  ille  terrarum 
mihi  .  .  .  angulus  ridet. 

91.  discipularum  .    .    .   cathe- 
dras :  the  easy-chairs  of  the  women 
to  whom  you  give  lessons.  —  iubeo 
plorare :     with    double    meaning, 
first  with  reference  to  their  singing 
and  also  as  a  humorous  substitute 
for  valere  iubeo. 

92.  meo  .  .  .  libello :   this  can 
mean  nothing  else  than  the  whole 
book  of  satires  and  indicates  that 
this  satire  was  a  kind  of  epilogue 
to  the  collection.  —  puer :  the  slave 
who  was  acting  as  his  secretary. 


142 


LIBER    SECVNDVS 

The  Second  Book  of  the  Satires  was  published  in  30  B.C.,  five  years 
after  the  First  Book,  and  the  changes  which  the  interval  had  produced 
in  the  temper  and  in  the  art  of  Horace  are  quite  evident ;  his  tone  is 
less  personal  and  more  mellow  and  he  has  adopted  the  dialogue  form 
instead  of  the  monologue.  In  both  respects  the  change  is  an  advance. 
The  earlier  satires,  with  all  their  geniality,  are  touched  here  and  there 
with  sensationalism,  and  even  the  later  work  betrays  at  times  a  certain 
uneasiness  about  his  own  position  and  success.  But  by  the  year  30 
B.C.  Horace,  now  about  thirty-five  years  of  age,  had  won  recognition  as  a 
writer.  He  was  secure  in  the  esteem  of  a  circle  of  friends  ;  he  had  accom- 
modated himself,  not  indeed  without  difficulty,  but  quite  sincerely,  to 
the  great  political  changes  which  he  had  at  first  opposed,  and  he  writes 
like  a  man  at  peace  with  himself  and  with  his  world.  He  is  not  less 
serious ;  in  his  treatment  of  philosophy  he  is  more  serious ;  but  he  is 
less  insistent,  less  urgent,  and  his  touch  is  lighter.  With  this  change  in 
tone  the  change  in  form,  from  monologue  to  dialogue,  and  especially  to  a 
dialogue  in  which  Horace  himself  plays  only  a  subordinate  part,  is  quite 
in  harmony.  A  tendency  toward  informal  dialogue  is  evident  in  some 
of  the  satires  of  the  First  Book  (e.g.,  i,  i,  30  ff. ;  i,  4,  38  ff.),  but  the  step 
from  this  to  the  formal  dialogue  of  2,  i  and  2,  5  is  a  long  one,  and  the 
change  was  undoubtedly  regarded  by  Horace  as  a  distinct  advance  in 
the  form  of  satire. 

I 

There  are  no  allusions  in  this  satire  which  fix  the  date  of  composi- 
tion. The  reference  to  the  Parthians  (vs.  15)  is  entirely  general  and 
might  have  been  made  before  the  battle  of  Actium,  while  Antonius  was 
still  master  of  the  East.  But  it  is  probable  that  this  satire  was  written 
after  the  rest  of  the  book  was  completed,  in  accordance  with  the  custom 
which  Horace  had  begun  in  Sat.  I,  I  and  which  he  afterward  followed 
in  Epod.  i,  i,  Carm.  I,  i,  and  Epist.  I,  I.  This  would  fix  the  date  about 
30  B.C.,  after  the  battle  of  Actium,  to  which  Caesaris  invicti  (vs.  n) 
may  be  an  allusion. 

M3 


HORATI 

'Trebatius,  people  say  that  my  satire  is  worthless.  What  shall  I  do 
about  it?  —  Keep  still!  —  What,  not  write  at  all?  —  Yes. —  By  Jove, 
you  may  be  right.  But  I  can't  go  to  sleep.  —  Can't  sleep?  Take  some 
exercise  and  drink  a  bottle  of  wine  just  before  bed-time  and  you  will 
sleep  perfectly  well.  Or,  if  what  you  mean  is  that  you  can't  stop  writing, 
then  write  about  Caesar;  that  is  work  that  will  pay  you.  —  I  wish  i 
could,  my  dear  sir,  but  .1  am  not  equal  to  describing  battles.  —  Then 
write  about  his  justice  and  his  energy.  —  Some  other  time,  per- 
haps ;  just  now  I  don't  think  I  will  try  it.  —  It  would  be  a  great  deal 
better  than  the  things  you  do  write,  which  make  enemies  on  all  sides. 
—  I  can't  help  myself.  Writing  is  my  hobby.  I  have  fighting  blood 
in  my  veins,  as  Lucilius  had  in  his.  But  I  never  attack ;  I  simply  de- 
fend myself  with  my  natural  weapon,  as  a  bull  does  with  his  horns.  I  can't 
help  myself;  write  I  must.  —  You  won't  live  long  if  you  stick  to  that 
course.  Some  of  your  great  friends  will  turn  a  cold  shoulder  to  you. — 
What,  did  Lucilius's  friends  desert  him?  I  am  not  as  great  a  man 
as  he  was,  but  if  any  man  attacks  me,  he  will  find  that  I  am  no  easy 
prey  —  unless,  of  course,  you  advise  differently.  —  No,  I  don't  think  I 
can  say  anything  against  that.  But  there  are  libel  laws  for  the  writers 
of  bad  verses.  —  Bad  verses !  Yes,  but  mine  are  not  bad  ;  they  are  very 
good.  Can  I  be  sued  for  writing  good  verses?  —  Certainly  not.  Good 
poetry  is  above  all  law.' 

In  issuing  a  second  collection  of  writings  in  the  same  style  as  that  by 
which  he  had  already  won  both  friends  and  enemies,  Horace  thought  it 
well  to  preface  it  with  a  further  defence  of  satire,  continuing  the  subject 
of  i,  4  and  i,  10.  But  as  i,  10  is  at  once  less  serious  and  more  assured 
than  i,  4,  so  this  satire  is  less  obviously  argumentative  than  i,  10.  Its 
underlying  purpose  is  self-defence  and  explanation,  but  under  the  cover 
of  pure  burlesque.  It  represents  a  consultation  between  Horace  and  his 
legal  adviser,  C.  Trebatius  Testa.  The  latter  is  well  known  to  us 
through  the  group  of  letters  addressed  to  him  by  Cicero  (ad  Fam.  7,  6- 
22)  ;  he  was  a  distinguished  jurisconsult  and  a  man  of  much  humor,  and 
therefore  a  suitable  figure  for  a  burlesque  consultation.  The  dialogue 
is  managed  with  great  skill ;  Trebatius,  in  a  dry,  legal  manner,  gives 
prudent  advice,  which  Horace  rejects  as  fast  as  it  is  given,  arguing  with 
much  heat  in  favor  of  the  course  that  he  had  already  determined  upon 
before  he  went  through  the  form  of  consulting  the  lawyer.  The  argu- 
ments, too,  by  which  Horace  defends  his  course  are  all  farcical :  Mi- 
lonius  gets  drunk  and  dances,  therefore  I  may  write  satire ;  the  bull 
gores,  the  wolf  bites,  and  Scaeva  poisons  his  mother,  therefore  I  may 
use  my  satire  to  wound  and  poison.  From  beginning  to  end  there  is 

144 


SERMONES 


[2,  i,  7 


not  an  argument  that  is  meant  to  be  taken  seriously  and  the  satire  be- 
comes thus  a  kind  of  proclamation  by  Horace  of  his  assurance  that  his 
writings  need  no  serious  defence. 

Horatius.    Sunt  quibus  in  satira  videor  nimis  acer  et 

ultra 

legem  tendere  opus  ;  sine  nervis  altera,  quicquid 
composui,  pars  esse  putat,  similisque  meorum 
mille  die  versus  deduci  posse.     Trebati, 
5        quid  faciam  praescribe.   Trebatins.  Quiescas.  Hor.  Ne 

faciam,  inquis, 
omnino  versus  ?     Treb.  Aio.     Hor.     Peream  male,  si 

non 
optimum   erat;    verum  nequeo  dormire.     Treb.   Ter 

uncti 


1 .  satira :    here   used    for  the 
first   time    by   Horace   and    in  a 
general,  not  a  concrete,  sense ;  in 
the  writing  of  satire. 

2.  legem :    i.e.  the  artistic  law 
which  should  govern  this  kind  of 
writing ;  cf.  vs.  63  and  operis  le*\ 
Ars  Poet.   135. — tendere:     bend, 
force,   of  bending  a  bow.  —  sine 
nervis :    without    vigor ;    cf.    the 
adj-  enervis.    Nervus    is    usually 
sinew,   muscle,    not   nerve.      The 
two  criticisms,  nimis  acer  and  sine 
nervis,  are   direct  opposites  and, 
therefore,  mutually  destructive. 

4.  deduci : .  spun  out,  reeled  off. 

5.  praescribe :  a  rather  formal 
word,  used  especially  in  legal  lan- 
guage. —  Quiescas :    with    senten- 
tious brevity,  as  befits  an  eminent 
legal  authority,  and  with  a  humor- 
ous double  meaning,  since  it  may 

HOR.  SAT. —  10  I 


be  either  '  never  mind  your  critics,* 
or  'stop  your  writing.1 

6.  Peream  male,   si :   cf.  i,  9, 
38  and  47. 

7.  optimum    erat :    would  not 
be  best.     The  impf.  indie,  of  neg- 
lected duty  or  opportunity,  espe- 
cially common  with  impersonals ; 
see  any  grammar.  —  dormire:  go 
to  sleep,  i.e.  give  up  writing  and, 
it  is  implied,  all  activity. 

7-9.  Trebatius  is  represented 
as  pretending  to  understand  dor- 
mire literally  (somno  quibus  est 
opus  alto)  and  as  giving  a  favor- 
ite remedy  for  insomnia,  in  which 
Horace  touches  two  hobbies  or  foi- 
bles of  the  great  lawyer.  He  was 
very  fond  of  swimming  (Cicero,  ad 
Fain.  7,  10,  2,  calls  him  studio- 
sissirnus  homo  natandi)  and  was 
not  disinclined  to  the  bottle  (cf. 


2.I.8J 


IIORAT1 


10 


»5 


transnanto  Tiberim,  somno  quibus  est  opus  alto, 
irriguumque  mero  sub  noctetn  corpus  habento. 
Aut,  si  tantus  amor  scribendi  te  rapit,  aude 
Caesaris  invicti  res  dicere,  multa.laborum 
praemia  laturus.     Hor.  Cupidum,  pater  optime,  vires 
deficiunt;  neque  enim  quivis  horrentia  pilis 
agmina  nee  fracta  pereuntis  cuspide  Gallos 
aut  labentis  equo  describat  volnera  Parthi. 


ad  Fam.  7,  22,  written  after  a 
night  with  Trebatius,  inhtseras heri 
inter  scyphos,  and  domum  bene 
potus  seroque  redieranf) .  —  Ter : 
a  sacred  number,  used  to  give 
formality  to  the  prescription.  — 
uncti :  oil  was  used  by  athletes  to 
soften  the  skin. — transnanto,  ha- 
bento :  old  forms  used  in  laws  and 
in  medical  recipes.  —  irriguum : 
one  of  many  euphemisms  (madi- 
dus,  uvidus,  etc.),  like  the  Engl. 
'full,"  tight.' 

10.  tantus  amor :  Trebatius  now 
recognizes  the  real  meaning  of  dor- 
mire,  which  he  had  pretended  to 
take  literally.  —  aude :  it  would  re- 
quire some  courage   to  write  an 
epic. 

11.  Caesaris:  the  nephew,  not 
the  uncle,  as  below,  vs.   19,  and 
everywhere  in  the  Satires  except 
I,  9.  1 8.  —  invicti :  this  may  be  a 
reference  to  the  battle  of  Actium, 
but   the   word   might   fairly  have 
been  used  before  that  event  with 
reference  to  the  earlier  victories  in 
the  civil  war. 

12.  praemia  :  it  may  perhaps  be 
a  little  hit  at  the  legal  profession 


to  represent  Trebatius  as  thinking 
first  of  the  payment  which  epic 
poetry  might  bring.  —  Both  la- 
turus and  cupidum  should  be  ren- 
dered in  English  by  clauses,  as 
Greenough  remarks.  —  pater :  a 
term  of  respect  from  a  younger 
man  to  an  older.  Cf.  puer,  vs.  60. 
31-15.  Here,  as  in  Carm.  i,  6, 
and  elsewhere,  in  professing  his 
inability  to  write  of  warlike  scenes, 
Horace  cannot  refrain  from  a  few 
phrases  of  description  which  sug- 
gest that  his  real  reason  for  re- 
fusing is  not  so  much  conscious 
inability  as  disinclination.  — pilis : 
the  Roman  weapon.  —  fracta  .  .  . 
cuspide,  pereuntis  :  the  signs  of  de- 
feat ;  the  broken  spear  is  merely 
one  of  the  evidences  of  rout  and 
disaster,  not  a  reference  to  the 
detached  head  of  the  pilum,  to 
which  fracta  would  not  be  appli- 
cable. So  labentis  equo  indicates 
the  defeat  of  the  Parthian  cavalry. 
The  Gauls  and  the  Parthians  are 
selected  merely  as  conspicuous 
among  the  enemies  of  Rome, 
without  reference  to  particular 
campaigns. 


146 


SERMONES 


[2,  I,  22 


20 


Treb.  Attamen  et  iustum  poteras  et  scribere  fortem, 
Scipiadam  lit  sapiens  Lucilius.     Hor.  Haud  mihi  dero, 
cum  res  ipsa  feret.     Nisi  dextro  tempore,  Flacci 
verba  per  attentam  non  ibunt  Caesaris  aurem, 
cui  male  si  palpere,  recalcitrat  undique  tutus. 
Treb.     Quanto  rectius  hoc,  quam  tristi  laedere  versu 
Pantolabum  scurram  Nomentanumque  nepotem, 


1 6 .  poteras :  yoii  might ;  cf .  opti- 
mum erat,  vs.  7.  —  iustum,  fortem : 
i.e.   in  his   capacity  as   law-giver 
(iustum)  and  administrator  (for- 
tem) . 

17.  Scipiadam:  for  Scipidnem, 
which  could  not  be  used  in  hexam- 
eter ;  there  is  no  patronymic  force 
in  the  ending.    The  younger  Scipio 
was  a  contemporary  and  friend  of 
Lucilius  ;  cf.  vss.  65  f.  —  sapiens : 
pred.,  '  like  a  man  of  sense,'  with 
an  indirect  reflection  uponHorace's 
lack  of  worldly  wisdom. — Lucilius : 
the  mention  of  Horace's  model  in 
satire  of  course  implies  that  Tre- 
batius  is  no  longer  advising  him 
to  give  up  satire  for  epic,  but  only 
to  turn  his  satire  to  more  profitable 
uses. — Haud  mihi  dero :  cf.  i,  9,  56, 
where  the  context  shows  that  cum 
res  ipsa  feret  means  the  same  thing 
as  dextro  tempore,  'when  a  proper 
opportunity  shall  present  itself.1 

18.  Flacci :   a  Flaccus ;  a  man 
of  so  humble  a  name  as  Flaccus, 
in  contrast  with  Caesaris. 

19  f .  attentam  .  .  .  aurem :  the 
comparison  of  Caesar  to  a  high- 
spirited  horse  is  suggested  in  these 
words,  to  be  expressed  more  fully 


in  the  next  line.  —  non:  with  the 
whole  phrase,  not  with  attentam 
alone  or  ibunt  alone.  —  ibunt :  the 
future  implies  intention.  As  there 
is  no  English  phrase  correspond- 
ing to  ire  per  aurem,  the  construc- 
tion must  be  shifted  in  translation  ; 
'  the  words  of  a  Flaccus  shall  not 
try  to  reach  the  ear  of  a  Caesar.'  — 
tutus  :  to  protect  himself. 

22.  Quoted,  with  change  of 
case,  from  Sat.  I,  8,  n.  The 
effect  is  therefore  as  if  he  had  said, 
'  than  to  write  such  a  savage  verse 
as  that  in  the  Eighth  Satire.' 
Cf.  I,  4,  92,  where  a  line  of  simi- 
lar character  is  quoted  from  i, 
2,  27.  That  quotation  is  intro- 
duced by  ego  si  risi  and  the  argu- 
ment, there  seriously  made,  is  that 
the  line  is  a  harmless  jest.  It  is 
almost  a  necessary  inference  that 
here  also  the  verse  quoted  by  Tre- 
batius  was  regarded  by  Horace  as 
in  fact  quite  harmless.  This  could 
be  true  only  if  the  persons  referred 
to  were  either  fictitious,  as  the 
name  Pantolabus  certainly  is,  or 
already  notorious,  as  was  probably 
the  case  with  Nomentanus  (cf. 
i,  i,  102  note). 

147 


2,  I.  23] 


HORATI 


cum  sibi  quisque  timet,  quamquam  est  intactus,  et  odit ! 

Hor.     Quid  faciam  ?     Saltat  Milonius,  ut  semel  icto 
25      accessit  fervor  capiti  numerusque  lucernis; 

Castor  gaudet  equis,  ovo  prognatus  eodem 

pugnis  ;  quot  capitum  vivunt,  totidem  studiorum 

milia  :  me  pedibus  delectat  claudere  verba 

Lucili  ritu,  nostrum  melioris  utroque. 
30      I  lie  velut  fidis  arcana  sodalibus  olim 

credebat  libris,  neque,  si  male  cesserat,  usquam 


43.  timet  .  .  .  etodit:  a  repe- 
tition of  the  charge  made  in  1,4, 
33.  The  purely  farcical  character 
of  the  reply  here  shows  how  secure 
Horace  felt  himself  to  be. 

24-29.  'I  can't  help  writing, 
any  more  than  Milonius  can  help 
getting  drunk  and  dancing.  Every- 
body has  his  little  weakness ;  mine 
is  satire.' 

24.  icto:    with   capiti ;    a   eu- 
phemism for  intoxication,  like  irri- 
gitutn,  vs.  9. 

25.  accessit :  in  a  double  sense 
with  fervor  and   numerus.  —  lu- 
cernis :   i.e.   when    he   has   drunk 
so  much   that   he   begins   to  see 
double. 

26.  'Even  twin  brothers  differ 
in  their  interests.'    The  contrast 
is  emphasized  by  using  ovo  pro- 
gnatus eodem  for  Pollux,  and,  in 
accordance  with  the  general  ^har- 
acter  of  the  argument,  two  of  the 
lower  gods  with  lower  interests  are 
selected  instead  of,  e.g.,  Apollo  and 
Mercury. 

27.  quot    capitum :    proverbial 
and  better  expressed  by  Terence, 


Phorm.  454,  qiiot  homines,  M 
sententiae ;  '  many  men  of  many 
minds.' 

28.  pedibus  . .  .  claudere  verba : 
a  repetition  of  the  phrase  pedibus 
quid  claudere  senis,  used  in  Sat. 
I,  10,  59  to  describe   the  merely 
mechanical  construction  of  hexam- 
eters.     Here   also,  with  a   differ- 
ent purpose,  it  puts  the  matter  in 
its  lowest  terms,  '  I  amuse  myself 
by  stringing  together  verses  that 
will  scan.' 

29.  melioris :  not  in  the  moral 
or  social  sense,  but  a  better  judge, 
a  better  authority.  —  utroque :  as 
if  the  thought  began  very  mod- 
estly—  'a  better  authority  than  I 
am '  —  and  then  went  on  to  a  little 
hit  at  his  advisor  —  '  or  than  you, 
either.' 

30-34.  The  Scholiasts  note  that 
this  is  a  bit  of  traditional  literary 
criticism,  going  back  to  Aristoxe- 
nus,who  had  said  that  Alcaeusand 
Sappho  volumina  sua  loco  soda- 
Hum  habuisse.  —  arcana  :  his  deep- 
est and  most  intimate  thoughts 
about  the  events  (si  male  cesse- 


148 


SERMONES 


[2,  i,  42 


decurrens  alio,  neque  si  bene ;  quo  fit  ut  omnls 

votiva  pateat  veluti  descripta  tabella 

vita  senis.     Sequor  hunc,  Lucanus  an  Apulus  anceps  : 

35     nam  Venusinus  arat  finem  sub  utrumque  colonus, 
missus  ad  hoc,  pulsis,  vetus  est  ut  fama,  Sabellis, 
quo  ne  per  vacuum  Romano  incurreret  hostis, 
sive  quod  Apula  gens  seu  quod  Lucania  bellum 
incuteret  violenta.     Sed  hie  stilus  haud  petet  ultro 

40     quemquam  animantem,  et  me  veluti  custodiet  ensis 
vagina  tectus ;  quern  cur  destringere  coner, 
tutus  ab  infestis  latronibus  ?     O  pater  et  rex 


rat,  si  bene)  of  life ;  not  secrets. — 
votiva  .  .  ,  tabella:  such  a  pic- 
ture as  is  referred  to  in  Carm. 
i,  5,  13  f.,  where  the  successive 
scenes  of  some  event  like  an 
escape  from  shipwreck  were  rep- 
resented in  a  single  picture.  Cf- 
the  scenes  from  the  Trojan  War 
in  Aen,  i,  456  ff.  —  senis:  the 
word  senex  was  sometimes  applied 
to  writers  of  the  early  period  as  a 
synonym  for  ve/us,  antiquus,  with- 
out reference  to  the  age  of  the 
individual.  [The  opposite  opinion 
may  be  found  in  M  tiller,  Lucil. 
p.  288.] 

34-39.  The  expression  is  el- 
liptical :  '  I  take  Lucilius  for  my 
leader,  for  I  too  come  of  fighting 
stock.  But  I  fight  only  in  self- 
defence.'  The  digression  upon  the 
question  whether  Venusia  is  prop- 
erly Lucanian  or  Apulian  is  sub- 
ordinate to  the  main  line  of 
reasoning.  —  anceps:  nom.  masc., 
with  the  subj.  of  sequor  \  the 


phrase  should  be  rendered  freely. 

—  ad  hoc  :  antec.  of  the  clause  quo 
ne   .    .        incurreret,  —  Sabellis  : 
the      Samnites.       Venusia     was 
founded     in     291     B.C.,    in     the 
Third    Samnite   War.  —  quo   ne : 
for  ut  ne  or  ut  eo  ne ;   but  this 
use  of  quo  is  without  a  parallel. 

—  quod:  after  si-ve  and  with  bel- 
lum. 

39.  Sed:    adversative   to    the 
underlying  thought  of  the  preced- 
ing  sentence.  —  hie    stilus  :    this 
pen  of  mine,  but  with  some  refer- 
ence  to  the   fact   that   the  sharp 
metal  stilus  could  be  actually  used 
as  a  weapon. 

40.  animantem:    living  being, 
to  generalize  the  thought. 

41.  vagina  tectus :    these    are 
the  important  words  in  the  com- 
parison ;  '  as  a  sword  is  a  defence, 
even  though  it  is  not  drawn  from 
its  scabbard.' 

42.  tutus:   i.e.  'as  long  as  I 
am  not  attacked.' 


149 


2,  i,  43] 


HORATI 


luppiter,  ut  pereat  positum  robigine  telum, 
nee  quisquam  noceat  cupido  mihi  pads !     At  ille 
45      qui  me  commorit  ('melius  non  tangere  !'  clamo), 
flebit,  et  insignis  tota  cantabitur  urbe. 
Cervius  iratus  leges  minitatur  et  urnam, 


43.  ut  pereat:  a  wish  intro- 
duced by  ut  exactly  as  wishes  are 
introduced  by  utinam,  which  is 
nothing  but  a  strengthened  form 
of  uti  (cf.  quis,  quisnani) ;  in- 
stanfies  are  not  infrequent.  The 
verse  is  in  form,  though  not  in 
sentiment,  a  reminiscence  of  Ca- 
tull.  66,  48,  luppiter \  ut  Chalybon 
omne  genus  pereat.  — positum :  a 
part  of  the  wish  ;  (  may  I  be  able 
to  put  it  away  and  let  it  rust ; ' 
almost  the  same  as  vagina  tectus. 

44-46.  In  these  lines  the  hu- 
morous exaggeration  and  affected 
solemnity  of  the  satire  reach  a 
climax.  Whatever  Horace  may 
have  been  in  his  earlier  years,  he 
was  at  this  time  as  far  removed  as 
possible  from  a  bragging  swash- 
buckler, whose  war-cry  (clamo)  was 
'  Better  not  touch  me!'  He  is,  in 
fact,  setting  up  here  the  figure  of 
himself  which  his  earlier  critics  had 
constructed,  exaggerating  it  and 
making  it  ridiculous  by  a  burlesque 
defence,  in  the  confident  assurance 
that  his  real  purpose  in  satire 
was  by  this  time  fully  recognized. 

45.  commorit:  =  commoverit. 
There  is  a  kind  of  progress  in 
pretended  touchiness  from  infestis 
latronibus  to  commorit  (stir  me  up) 
and  tangere  (lay  a  finger  on  me). 


46  cantabitur :  i.e.  the  whole 
town  shall  be  repeating  the  satiri- 
cal verses  that  I  will  write  about 
him. 

47-56.  These  lines  serve  a 
double  purpose.  As  a  part  of 
the  ironical  argument  they  pre- 
tend to  justify  the  determination 
(44-46)  to  continue  the  writing  of 
satire  ('  Canidia  poisons  her  ene- 
mies and  I  will  poison  mine :  the 
wolf  bites  and  therefore  I  will 
write  biting  satire1),  and  they 
illustrate  the  general  principle 
(vss.  24-28)  that  men  are  not  to 
be  blamed  for  yielding  to  their 
special  weaknesses  ('  and  satire  is 
my  weakness,'  vs.  28).  At  the 
same  time,  these  allusions,  which 
a  reader  of  Horace's  time  would 
at  once  understand,  show  how 
harmless  and  impersonal  his 
satire  really  was.  For  no  one 
of  the  five  persons  named  was 
really  an  enemy  of  Horace.  Cer- 
vius, Albucius,  and  Scaeva  are 
names  which  occur  elsewhere 
(Sat.  2,  6,  77;  2,  2,  67;  Epist.  i, 
17,  i),  but  with  quite  different 
characteristics ;  they  are  merely 
Roman  names  which  do  not  refer 
to  individuals.  Canidia  is  fre- 
quently mentioned  (Sat.  I,  8; 
2,  8,  95;  Epod.  3,  8;  5,  17)  in 


150 


SERMONES 


[2,  I,  56 


Canidia  Albuci  quibus  est  inimica  venenum, 
grande  malum  Turius,  si  quid  se  iudice  certes. 

50      Vt  quo  quisque  valet  suspectos  terreat,  utque 
imperet  hoc  natura  potens,  sic  collige  mecum  : 
dente  lupus,  cornu  taurus  petit :  unde  nisi  intus 
mon stratum  ?     Scaevae  vivacem  crede  nepoti 
matrem  ;   nil  faciet  sceleris  pia  dextera :  mirum, 

55      ut  neque  calce  lupus  quemquam  neque  dente  petit  bos: 
sed  mala  toilet  anum  vitiato  melle  cicuta. 


a  way  which  shows  that  she  was 
already  notorious.  Turius  appears 
to  have  been  a  character  of  the 
Ciceronian  period,  long  since 
dead,  whose  abuse  of  his  judicial 
office  was  a  matter  of  common 
knowledge.  The  whole  passage, 
therefore,  savage  as  the  personal 
allusions  are  made  to  appear,  is 
in  reality,  like  the  quotation  in 
vs.  22,  a  reminder  of  Horace's 
moderation  in  satire  and  of  his 
avoidance  of  personal  attacks 
upon  contemporaries. 

47.  Cervius :    an   informer ;   cf. 
Sat.    I,  4,   65    n.  —  urnam:      the 
vase   from    which    the    names   of 
jurymen  were  drawn  and  in  which 
their  votes  were  deposited. 

48.  Albuci:    with   venenum. — 
quibus:   the  antec.  is  the  obj.  of 
minitatur  to  be  supplied  from  vs. 

47- 

49.  grande  malum :  i.e.  a  heavy 
penalty  without  regard  to  the  jus- 
tice of  the  case. 

50.  Vt:  how,  introducing  terreat 
and  imperet. 


51.  sic:  from  the  following,  vs. 
52.  —  collige  :  you  may  judge ;  the 
potential   use   of  the   impv.,  like 
scito.  —  mecum :     as  I  do,  i.e.  by 
following    the    line    of   argument 
which  I  now  present. 

52.  dente,  cornu :  the  emphatic 
words.  —  intus :     from     within, 
the  usual  Plautine  and  colloquial 
meaning. 

53.  vivacem:  too  long-lived,  so 
that  the  son's  inheritance  of  his 
property  is  delayed. 

54  f .  sceleris :  crime  of  violence. 
—  pia :  filial.  He  would  not  cut 
her  throat  or  strangle  her;  his 
little  weakness  is  poisoning,  not 
bloodshed.  —  mirum,  ut :  as  aston- 
ishing as  it  is  that,  i.e.  no  more 
astonishing. — calce:  suggesting 
the  contrast  of  the  wolf  to  a  kick- 
ing horse  (cf.  vs.  20)  as  a  slight 
variation  from  vs.  52. 

56.  mala :  a  standing  epithet 
with  poisons. — toilet:  euphemis- 
tic, as  the  whole  line  is ;  the 
matter  will  be  managed  quietly, 
without  publicity. 


2,  i,  57] 


HORATI 


Ne  longum  faciam,  seu  me  tranquilla  senectus 
exspectat  seu  Mors  atris  circumvolat  alis, 
dives,  inops,  Romae,  seu  fors  ita  iusserit,  exul, 

60      quisquis  erit  vitae,  scribam,  color.     Treb.    O  puer,  ut 

sis 

vitalis  metuo,  et  maiorum  ne  quis  amicus 
frigore  te  feriat.     Hor.  Quid,  cum  est  Lucilius  ausus 
primus  in  hunc  operis  componere  carmina  morem, 
detrahere  et  pellem,  nitidus  qua  quisque  per  ora 

65  cederet,  introrsum  turpis,  num  Laelius  aut  qui 
duxit  ab  oppressa  meritum  Carthagine  nomen 
ingenio  offensi  aut  laeso  doluere  Metello 


57.  Ne  longum  .  faciam :  the 
same  words  in  i,  3,  137,  and  cf. 
ne  te  morer,  i,  i,  14. 

60.  vitae  .  .  .  color:  this  fig- 
urative use  of  color  is  especially 
common  in  rhetorical  writings, 
e.g.  Ars  Poet.  86,  236. 

6 1  f.  vitalis:  long-lived;  Tre- 
batius  goes  back  to  58,  Mors  .  .  . 
circumvolat ;  '  I  am  afraid  that 
you  won't  live  long,  if  that's  your 
spirit.'  —  maiorum :  with  amicus. 
The  reference  is  to  the  friends  of 
high  station  mentioned  by  Horace 
with  pride  in  Sat.  I,  10,  81  ff., 
Maecenas,  Pollio,  Messalla.  — 
frigore  .  .  .  feriat  :  a  little 
more  forcible  than  strike  you 
with  a  chill ;  ferire  is  used 
of  striking  an  enemy  dead, 
'  striking  down '  and  frigus  sug- 
gests the  dangerous  fever  and 
chill. 

63.  primus  :  i.e.  Lucilius  began 
this  kind  of  writing ;  I  am  merely 


a  follower  and  therefore  less  liable 
to  suffer  for  it. 

64  f .  pellem :  an  allusion  to  the 
fable  of  the  Ass  in  the  Lion's 
Skin;  cf.  Sat.  I,  6,  22  and  Epist. 
i,  1 6,  45,  introrsum  turpem, 
speciosum  pelle  decora.  — per  ora : 
among  men ;  the  phrase  occurs 
only  a  few  times,  but  the  meaning 
is  clear.  —  cederet :  colloquial  for 
incederet.  —  introrsum  turpis :  i.e. 
under  the  skin  is  an  ugly  ass. 

65.  Laelius :  C.  Laelius,  consul 
in  140  B.C.,  a  friend  of  Terence, 
used  by  Cicero  as  a  speaker  in  the 
two  dialogues  de  Senectute  and  de 
Amicitia. 

66.  The   younger   Scipio  Afri- 
canus,  whose  friendship  with  Lae- 
lius was  historic. 

67.  offensi:     sc.   sunt.  —  laeso 
.  .  .  Metello:  Q.  Caecilius  Metel- 
lus   Macedonicus,   consul   in    143 
B.C.,    a     political     opponent     of 
Scipio. 


SERMONES 


[2.  i,  74 


famosisque  Lupo  cooperto  versibus  ?     Atqui 
primores  populi  arripuit  populumque  tributim, 
70      scilicet  uni  aequus  virtuti  atque  eius  amicis.  • 

Quin  ubi  se  a  volgo  et  scaena  in  secreta  remorant 
virtus  Scipiadae  et  mitis  sapientia  Laeli, 
nugari  cum  illo  et  discincti  ludere,  donee 
decoqueretur  olus,  solid.     Quicquid  sum  ego,  quamvis 


68.  Lupo :  L.  Cornelius  Lentu- 
lus   Lupus,    consul    in    156   B.C., 
also    an    enemy    of    Scipio    and 
attacked    by   Lucilius    apparently 
with  special  bitterness.  —  famosis : 
which    made    them    notorious.  — 
cooperto:  overwhelmed',  the  verses 
fell  upon  him  like  a  volley  of  jave- 
lins. 

The  argument  of  vss.  62-68  is 
ironical,  though  less  broadly  so 
than  that  of  47-56  ;  '  do  you  sup- 
pose that  Scipio  and  Laelius  were 
greatly  disturbed  when  Lucilius 
turned  his  satire  upon  their  politi- 
cal opponents  ? '  —  Atqui :  and  yet 
Lucilius  was  much  more  daring 
and  more  sweeping  in  his  satire 
than  I  am. 

69.  arripuit :   a  technical   term 
of  law ;  summoned  to  court.  —  tri- 
butim :  a  tribe  at  a  time.     This  is 
a  reference  to  a  political  satire  in 
which      Lucilius      tribus     omnes 
XXXV  laceravit  (Schol.  to  Pers. 
i,    114);    of  this   two   fragments 
remain,  containing   the  names  of 
two  of  the  tribes  attacked,  Papiria 
and  Oufentina. 

70.  scilicet :     of  course.      The 
line  is  a  humorous   afterthought, 


really  in  direct  contradiction  of 
the  preceding  statement,  just  as  in 
vss.  43  ff.  and  below  in  vss.  77  f. 
an  exaggerated  pugnacity  and  a 
regard  for  the  proprieties  are  set 
in  contrast ;  '  he  attacked  every- 
body, high  and  low,  and  the  whole 
people,  tribe  by  tribe,  but  of 
course,  you  understand,  he  at- 
tacked only  bad  people  (cf.  vs.  85) 
and  never  satirized  the  virtuous  — 
any  more  than  I  do.' 

71.  Quin:    why;    corrective   of 
the  insufficient  expression  in  of- 
fensi,  doluere.  —  scaena :  the  stage 
of  public  life. 

72.  virtus  Scipiadae :  Homeric 
circumlocutions ;      '  the     virtuous 
Scipio  and   the  wise   and  gentle 
Laelius.' 

73.  discincti:   i.e.  laying  aside 
all    the    formalities    of    city   life. 
There  are  other  references  (Schol. 
and  Cic.  de  Orat.  2,  6,  22)  to  this 
distinct  tradition  that  Scipio  and 
Laelius  enjoyed  the  opportunities 
of  relaxation  in  the  country. 

74.  olus :    i.e.   a  simple  coun- 
try meal,  'a  dinner  of  herbs.'  — 
soliti :  sc.  sunt,  as  with  offensi  in 
vs.  67. 


2,  i,  75] 


HORATI 


75      infra  Lucili  censum  ingeniumque,  tamen  me 
cum  magnis  vixisse  invita  fatebitur  usque 
invidia,  et,  fragili  quaerens  illidere  dentem, 
off endet  solido,  —  nisi  quid  tu,  docte  Trebati, 
dissentis.     Treb.  Equidem  nihil  hinc  diffindere  possum. 

80      Sed  tamen  ut  monitus  caveas,  ne  forte  negoti 
incutiat  tibi  quid  sanctarum  inscitia  legum  : 
si  mala  condiderit  in  quem  quis  carmina,  ius  est 
iudiciumque.     Hor.  Esto,  si  quis  mala ;  sed  bona  si  quis 


75.  censum :    rank.      Lucilius 
was  an  eques  and  therefore  natu- 
rally connected  with  men  of  sta- 
tion. 

76.  invita :    i.e.   even  against 
its  will,  in  spite  of  itself. 

77  f.  fragili,  solido  :  dat.  neut. ; 
alluding  to  the  fable  of  the  Viper 
and  the  File.  —  illidere  :  to  dash 
in,  expressing  the  eagerness  of 
the  bite. 

78.  nisi  .  .  .  dissentis :  cf.  70 
note.     Horace  represents  himself 
as  suddenly  remembering,  at  the 
very  climax  of  his  bragging,  that 
he  is  supposed  to  be  asking  advice. 

79.  hinc  diffindere :  lit., '  to  cut 
off  anything  from  this,'  with  the 
figure  of  fragili  .  .  .  solido  still 
in  mind;    translate,  "I  can't  find 
anything  in  this  to  take  exception 
to.'     [But  the  text  is  not  sure.] 

80.  ut  .  .  .  caveas :  not  a  final 
clause  and  not  to  be  explained  by 
supplying  a  main  clause.     This  is 
the  use  of  ut  (more  often  uti)  in 
sentences   of   command,    parallel 
to  the  use  of  uti-nam  in  wishes ; 
it  is    not    infrequent   in    Plautus 


(Bacch.  739,  proin  tu  ab  eo  ut 
caveas  tibii  Capt.  115,  etc.)  and 
Terence  (Ad.  280,  Phorm.  212), 
but  survives  especially  in  legal  for- 
mulas (C.I.L.  i,  196,  23  and  in 
quotations  in  Livy)  and  is  used 
here  to  give  a  formal  tone  to  the 
injunctions  of  the  lawyer;  cf.  vs. 
8  f.  transnanto,  habento,  and  vs. 
82.  —  negoti:  trouble,  a  common 
colloquial  meaning ;  gen.  partitive 
with  quid. 

81.  sanctarum:     sacred,   as    a 
lawyer     would     naturally     think 
them. 

82.  si  mala  .  .  .  carmina :  this 
is  almost  the  phraseology  of  the 
law  of  the  XII  Tables  as  quoted 
by  Pliny,  H.  N.   28,   4,    18,   qui 
malum   carmen    incantassit,   and 
by  Cicero  de  Rep.  4,  10,  12,  sive 
(quis)    carmen    condidisset.  —  ius 
est  iudiciumque  :    there  is  right  of 
action  and  a   legal  remedy;   the 
offended  party  has  a  legal  right  to 
sue. 

83.  mala :    Horace    represents 
himself    as     understanding     this 
word,   which   in    the    law   means 


154 


SERMONES  t2,  I.  86 

iudice  condiderit  laudatus  Caesare  ?  si  quis 
85      opprobriis  dignum  latraverit,  integer  ipse  ? 

Treb.  Solventur  risu  tabulae,  tu  missus  abibis. 

injurious,  abusive,  in  the  esthetic  will  go  free,'  and  the  figure  in 

sense,  bad  poetry.  solvent^^r  is  used  elsewhere 

84.  Caesare:  Caesar  is  named  (Quint.  5,  10,  67,  cum  risu  iota 

rather  than  some  recognized  critic  res  solmtur ;  Cic.  de  Orat.  2, 

like  Quintilius  Varus  because  he  58,  236,  res  .  .  .  ioco  risuque 

would  be  accepted  by  a  lawyer  as  dissolvit),  but  the  exact  meaning 

the  highest  authority.  of  tabidae  (the  indictment,  the, 

86.  The  sense  of  this  line  is  voting  tablets,  the  benches  of 

perfectly  clear,  'the  case  will  be  the  jury-men)  cannot  be  deter- 

laughed  out  of  court  and  you  mined. 


There  is  no  internal  evidence  to  fix  the  date  of  this  satire ;  it  was 
written  between  35  and  30  B.C. 

'The  advantages  of  plain  living  —  I  am  repeating  what  I  once  heard 
from  a  wise  old  farmer  —  cannot  be  properly  set  forth  in  an  after-dinner 
conversation ;  only  a  hungry  man  can  know  how  good  plain  food  may 
be.  At  a  dinner  party  your  judgment  is  confused  by  the  elaborate 
cookery  and  —  still  worse  —  by  the  rarity  or  the  novelty  of  the  viands. 
Indeed,  the  very  over-abundance  sometimes  drives  you  back  in  disgust 
to  simple  flavors.  For  it  is  only  lately  that  you  have  learned,  in  obedi- 
ence to  fashion,  to  like  stork ;  roast  sea-gull  will  be  the  next  whim,  I 
suppose. 

'  But  you  must  not  think  —  says  my  old  farmer  —  that  simplicity 
means  stinginess.  Do  not  rush  to  the  other  extreme ;  keep  to  the 
middle  course  of  a  plain  neatness. 

'  Consider,  now,  the  advantages  of  such  a  way  of  living :  health,  vigor, 
the  pleasure  of  occasional  indulgence,  hospitality,  good  repute,  money 
left  in  your  purse,  and,  chief  of  all,  readiness  to  meet  the  buffets  of  for- 
tune. I  used  to  hear  the  old  farmer,  then  a  hired  laborer  on  the  farm 
he  had  once  owned,  discoursing  about  this  to  his  sons  :  "  I  have  lived 
a  temperate  life  and  my  wants  are  few.  Let  Fortune  do  her  worst ;  he 
that  is  down  need  fear  no  fall.1" 

In  form,  this  satire,  like  3,  4,  7,  8  of  this  book,  consists  of  a  main 
body  of  didactic  discourse  set  in  an  introductory  framework.  In  the 

155 


*,  2,  I]  HO  RAH 

other  satires,  however,  the  framework  is  in  dialogue,  generally  very 
skilfully  adapted  to  its  special  purpose,  while  here  the  setting  is  not 
clearly  conceived  (cf.  vs.  7  note),  the  introduction  is  too  brief  (vss.  2  f.). 
and  the  quotation  passes  from  indirect  to  direct  without  sufficient  mo- 
tive and  with  a  second  and  superfluous  introduction  (vss.  112-115). 
In  the  main  discourse  also  there  is  a  similar  lack  of  clearness  of  outline. 
The  change  from  the  plural  (vss.  1-7)  to  the  vague  tu  breaks  the  con- 
tinuity. The  reference  to  Ofellus  in  vs.  53  is  not  distinct  enough  to 
preserve  the  illusion  of  quotation.  The  knowledge  of  places,  fashions, 
and  persons  in  Rome  is  quite  inconsistent  with  the  circumstances  of  an 
Apulian  peasant ;  this  is  in  part  to  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  the 
whole  satire  is  a  parody  of  a  Stoic  sermon,  in  which  allusions  to  Roman 
affairs  would  be  quite  in  place,  but  the  inconsistency  remains  and  adds 
nothing  to  the  humor.  The  explanation  of  these  incongruities  in  struc- 
ture is  that  Horace  is  here  experimenting  with  a  form  of  satire  which  is 
a  compromise  between  the  dialogue  form  of  Satires  3,  4,  7,  and  8  and  the 
frankly  personal  monologue  of  Satire  6,  and  is  inferior  to  either. 

There  is  a  similar  compromise  or  combination  in  the  subject-matter ; 
on  the  one  hand,  the  satire  contrasts  country  life  with  the  life  of  the 
city,  as  is  done  in  greater'  fulness  and  with  greater  effectiveness  in 
Satire  6;  on  the  other  hand,  the  luxuries  and  fashions  of  the  table, 
which  are  ridiculed  here,  are  treated  more  fully  and  more  humorously  in 
Satires  4  and  8.  But  the  two  subjects  harmonize  more  easily  than 
the  two  forms.  The  combination,  however,  is  marked  enough  to  sug- 
gest the  hypothesis  that  this  satire  is  the  earliest  of  the  book  in  date  of 
composition,  and  that  both  form  and  subject  were  worked  out  to  greater 
perfection  in  the  later  satires. 

Quae  virtus  et  quanta,  boni,  sit  vivere  parvo 

(nee  meus  hie  sermo  est,  sed  quae  praecepit  Ofellus 

rusticus,  abnormis  sapiens,  crassaque  Minerva), 

1.  boni:    &ya$OL,  as  a  friendly  sect.     So  Cicero,  d?  Amic.  5,  18, 
form  of  address.  says  that  certain  Roman  worthies 

2.  nee  meus  .  .  .  est :   the  same  were  not  philosophers,  ad  istonun 
phrase,  KOVK  tfj.o<:  6  /j.vOo<;,  occurs  nor  mam.  —  crassa  Minerva :  of  a 
in  a  fragment  of  Euripides  and  is  rough-and-ready  ivit.     Cf.  pingui 
quoted  by  Plato,  Symp.  177  A.  Minerva,  Cic.   de  Amic,    5,    19. 

3.  abnormis  :    unschooled,    not  Minerva  is  the  goddess  of  intelli- 
bound    by   the  doctrines   of  any  gence. 

156 


SERMONES 


I  2,  2,  12 


discite,  non  inter  lances  mensasque  nitentis, 
cum  stupet  insanis  acies  fulgoribus  et  cum 
acclinis  falsis  animus  meliora  recusat, 
verum  hie  impransi  mecum  disquirite.     '  Cur  hoc  ?  ' 
Dicam,  si  potero.     Male  verum  examinat  omnis 
corruptus  iudex.     Leporem  sectatus  equove 
lassus  ab  indomito,  vel,  si  Rom  ana  fatigat 
militia  adsuetum  graecari,  seu  pila  velox, 
molliter  austerum  studio  fallente  laborem, 


4  f.  nitentis,  fulgoribus :  the 
gleaming  of  silver  plate,  which  the 
Romans  used  very  freely,  is  often 
alluded  to  in  descriptions  of  the 
tables  at  a  banquet,  e.g.  Catull. 
64,  44  ff.  —  stupet  acies :  the  eyes 
are  dazzled,  of  course  in  a  figura- 
tive sense,  '  the  judgment  is  dis- 
iracted.1 

7.  hie  impransi :   here,  not  at 
a  table,  and  fasting,  hungry,  not 
after  an    elaborate   dinner.      The 
two  words  seem  to  suggest  a  par- 
ticular scene  and  certain  definite 
circumstances  —  a  group  of  friends 
or    neighbors    waiting    for    their 
lunch,  —  but    if    such    a    setting 
for  the  discourse  was  in  Horace's 
mind,  it  is  lost  sight  of  at  once  and 
not  again  alluded  to  in  the  satire. 
Cf.    note  on  vs.    17.  —  Cur  hoc: 
i.e.  'why  impransi ' f 

8.  si  potero  :  this  gives  the  air 
of  a  lecturer :  '  I  will  endeavor  to 
tell  you.'  —  Male  :   with  examinat. 
The  sentence  can  be  best  trans- 
lated by  turning  it  into  the  negative 
form ;    '  no  judge   who  has  been 
bribed  .  .  .' 


9-16.  The  outline  of  this  loosely 
constructed  sentence  is  simple ; 
'  get  an  appetite  by  hard  exercise, 
and  then  see  whether  you  are  dis- 
posed to  refuse  plain  food.1  But 
after  mentioning  two  kinds  of 
Roman  exercise,  hunting  (cf.  Epod. 
2,  29  ff.;  Carm.  I,  i,  25  ff.)  and 
riding  (Carm.  1,8,  5  ff.),  he  intro- 
duces as  an  alternative  two  kinds 
of  Greek  athletics,  ball-playing  and 
the  throwing  of  the  discus,  each 
in  a  conditional  clause,  seu  pila 
(te  agif),  seu  discus  te  agit;  the 
first  is  left  without  a  formal  apod- 
osis,  but  pete  is  the  apodosis  to 
the  second.  Then  as  the  formal 
structure  of  the  sentence  has  been 
disturbed,  the  substance  of  9-13  is 
condensed  into  cunt  .  .  .  extuderit 
and  repeated  in  siccus,  inanis.  — 
militia :  with  special  reference  to 
riding.  —  graecari  :  there  is  a 
suggestion  of  effeminacy  in  this 
verb.  —  velox :  the  game  consisted 
in  rapid  passing  of  the  ball  from 
one  player  to  another.  —  molliter 
.  .  .  laborem:  i.e.  '  in  which  the 
interest  in  the  game  makes  the 


*.  2. 


HORATI 


seu  te  discus  agit,  pete  cedentem  aera  disco ; 
cum  labor  extuderit  fastidia,  siccus,  inanis 

15      sperne  cibum  vilem  ;  nisi  Hymettia  mella  Falerno 
ne  biberis  diluta.     Foris  est  promus,  et  atrum 
defendens  piscis  hiemat  mare  :  cum  sale  panis 
latrantem  stomachum  bene  leniet.     Vnde  putas  aut 
qui  partum  ?     Non  in  caro  nidore  voluptas 

20     summa,  sed  in  te  ipso  est.     Tu  pulmentaria  quaere 
sudando  ;  pinguem  vitiis  albumque  neque  ostrea 
nee  scarus  aut  poterit  peregrina  iuvare  lagois. 
Vix  tamen  eripiam,  posito  pavone,  velis  quin 


player  enjoy  the  exercise,  forget- 
ting how  severe  it  is.'  This  abl. 
abs.  clause  takes  the  place  of  an 
apodosis  to  sen  pila. —  discus:  a 
large  flat  quoit,  thrown  for  dis- 
tance, not  for  accuracy.  —  agit. 
stirs,  rouses,  attracts.  A  rare  use, 
but  exactly  paralleled  in  Cic. 
Arch.  7,  1 6,  haec  studio,  adulescen- 
tiam  agunt,  senectutem  oblectant. 
—  pete:  strike.  —  disco:  abl. — 
extuderit :  i.e.  '  has  knocked  the 
nonsense  out  of  you';  a  collo- 
quial use.  —  Hymettia,  Falerno : 
the  finest  honey  and  wine.  — 
promus :  the  butler  or  steward, 
who  keeps  the  keys  of  the  s'.ore- 
room. 

17.  hiemat  mare:  this  has  been 
taken  to  indicate  that  the  scene  of 
the  discourse  was  a  villa  on  the 
seashore,  where  Horace  repeats 
the  precepts  of  Ofellus  to  a  group 
of  friends.  But  the  reference  is 
too  general  for  that ;  fish  are  men- 
tioned here,  as  in  31  ff.,  48  f.,  95, 


merely  as  other  kinds  of  food  are 
specified. 

18.  leniet:  the    future  implies 
'you  will  find  that  it  will  soothe.' 

19.  qui    partum :     whence    or 
how    do  you    suppose    that    this 
comes  about,  that  you  are  glad  to 
get  the  plainest  food? 

20.  Tu:    emphatic,  with  refer- 
ence   to    te    ipso.  — pulmentaria  : 
the  Scholiasts   refer  to  the  story 
that   Socrates,   being    asked   why 
he  was  taking  such  a  long  walk, 
replied    oi/'ov    <rwayo>,    which    is 
almost     pulmentarium      quaero. 
Cf.  also  the   saying  fames  opti- 
mum condimentum. 

21  f.  vitiis:  excesses  in  eating 
and  drinking.  —  ostrea,  scarus, 
lagois :  three  expensive  delicacies. 
But  neither  the  scarus,  a  kind  of 
fish,  nor  the  lagois,  a  game  bird, 
can  be  precisely  identified.  —  iu- 
vare: to  give  you  pleasure. 

23.  eripiam :  with  prohibitive 
force  and  therefore  followed  by 


158 


SERMONES 


f  2,  2,  32 


hoc  potius  quam  gallina  tergere  palatum, 
25      corruptus  vanis  rerum,  quia  veneat  auro 

rara  avis,  et  picta  pandat  spectacula  cauda ; 

tamquam  ad  rem  attineat  quicquam.    Num  vesceris  ista 

quam  laudas  pluma  ?     Cocto  num  adest  honor  idem  ? 

carne  tamen  quamvis  distat  nihil,  hanc  magis  ilia 
30      imparibus  formis  deceptum  te  petere  esto, 

unde  datum  sentis,  lupus  hie  Tiberinus  an  alto 

captus  hiet,  pontisne  inter  iactatus  an  amnis 


quin. — posito  :  on  the  table,  as 
in  Sat.  i,  3,  92. — pavone :  the 
peacock  was  first  used  as  an  article 
of  food  by  Hortensius  the  orator 
and  was  afterward  regarded  as  a 
necessary  part  of  a  banquet.  Cf. 
Cic.  ad  Fam.  9,  20,  2,  sed  vide 
audaciarn ;  etiam  Hirtio  cenam 
dedi  sine  pavone. 

24.  tergere :  almost  exactly  like 
the  English  to  tickle  the  palate. 

25.  corruptus  :  cf.  vs.  9.  —  vanis 
rerum :  =  vanis   rebus ;    so  fictus 
rerum.  Sat.   2,   8,   83.  —  veneat: 
the     subjv.      suggests     the    real, 
though    unexpressed,   motive  for 
the  preference. 

28.  Cocto  .  .  .  idem:  the  pea- 
cock was  cooked  with  its  plumage, 
but  the  brilliancy  of  the  feathers 
would  be  lost.  —  num  adest:  mon- 
osyllabic hiatus  with  a  word  end- 
ing in  -m  or  a  long  vowel ;  cf.  si 
me  amas,  bat.  I,  9,  38. 

29-32.  '  You  pretend  to  prefer 
peacock  to  fowl,  but  it  is  a  mere 
pretence ;  you  could  not  tell  them 
apart  if  it  were  not  for  the  differ- 
ence in  size  Let  me  try  you  with 


two  pike  of  the  same  size  and  see 
if  you  can  distinguish  the  one 
caught  in  the  Tiber  —  which  you 
epicures  consider  so  much  better 

—  from  one  caught  in  the  sea.'  — 
quamvis :    frequently  with  the  in- 
die, in  Horace,  e.g.  Sat.  i,  3,  129. 

—  hanc  ilia  :  sc.  carnem,  carne.  — 
imparibus  .  .  .  decoptum :  this  does 
not  mean  that  the  epicure  could 
not  distinguish  fowl  from  peacock, 
but  that  he  allowed  the  fact  that 
the  peacock  was  bigger  to  delude 
him  into  thinking  that  it  was  also 
better.      It   is   the   same  as    cor- 
ruptus  vanis  rerum,  vs.  25  ;  mis- 
led by  the  false  standard  of  size.  — 
esto :   grant  that.  —  unde   datum 
sentis :     whence  do  you   get    the. 
power  to  distinguish  ;  i.e.   ( when 
there  is  no  difference  in  size,  there 
is  no  way  in  which  you  can  distin- 
guish, as  you  pretend  to  do.'     Cf. 
vs.  1 8  and  unde  petitum  hoc  in  me 
iacis?    Sat.  i,  4,  79.  — hiet :  this 
should  be  made  subordinate  in  the 
translation;     'whether  this    pike 
with  its  mouth   open   was  caught 
.  .  .'  —  pontis  inter  :    between  the 


159 


«»  2.  33] 


HORATI 


ostia  sub  Tusci  ?     Laudas,  insane,  trilibrem 

mullum,  in  singula  quern  minuas  pulmenta  necesse  est. 
35      Ducit  te  species,  video  :  quo  pertinet  ergo 

proceros  odisse  lupos  ?     Quia  scilicet  illis 

maiorem  natura  modum  dedit,  his  breve  pondus. 

leiunus  raro  stomachus  volgaria  temnit. 

'  Porrectum  magno  magnum  spectare  catino 
40      vellem,'  ait  Harpyiis  gula  digna  rapacibus.     At  vos, 

praesentes  Austri,  coquite  horum  obsonia !    Quamquam 


bridges,  i.e.  from  the  shore  of  the 
island  which  was  connected  by 
bridges  with  the  two  banks.  The 
fish  caught  in  the  swift  current 
here  (iactatus)  were  thought  to 
have  a  finer  flavor.  This  passage 
is  reminiscent  of  Lucilius,  1176 
(Marx),^0ff/£f  Tiberinus  duo  inter 
captus  catillo  (scavenger,  i.e.  a 
pike). 

33.  insane:    a   Stoic  form  of 
address;     cf.   Sat.   2,  3,  81,  and 
326.  —  trilibrem :    the  mullet  was 
usually  a  small  fish,  rarely  weigh- 
ing as  much  as  two  pounds,  and 
enormous    sums    were    paid    for 
those  of  abnormal  size. 

34.  pulmenta :  helps,  portions. 
—  minuas  .  .  .  necesse  est :  para- 
taxis,   as  often  with   necesse  est. 
The  argument  is  that  there  is  no 
real  reason  for  preferring  the  large 
mullet,  since  it  must  be  divided 
into  portions  to  be  served. 

35  ff.  The  sententious  brevity 
of  the  clauses  is  in  parody  of  the 
Stoic  manner.  —  Quia  scilicet : 
giving  the  real  reason  in  an  ironi- 
cal form ;  '  it  is  mere  fashion  with- 


out taste  which  leads  you  to  prefer 
the  rare  and  unnatural  —  small 
pike  and  large  mullets.1  The 
modern  parallel  to  this  is  serving 
fruits  out  of  season. 

38.  raro  :  with  ieiunus  ;    f  it   is 
because  you  seldom  feel  real  ap- 
petite   that  you    seek    for    such 
varieties.' 

39.  magno  magnum :  a  sort  of 
outcry  as  if  from  some  one  who 
feels  himself  free  from  the  whims 
of  fashion ;  '  but   I  should  really 
like  to  see  a  big  fish  in  a  big  dish.' 
The  answer  is,  'your  gluttony  is 
no  more  natural  than  the  caprices 
of  fashion.' 

40.  At:    not  adversative,  but, 
as  frequently  in  curses,  a  particle 
of  transition. 

41.  praesentes:      i.e.      'come 
yourselves  and  cook  (taint)    the 
food  of    such    people.'  —  Austri: 
the  warm   south  winds.  —  Quam- 
quam :    '  and  yet  I  need   scarcely 
say  this,  for  those  whose  appetites 
are   spoiled    with    an    over-abun- 
dance of  rich  viands  cannot  distin- 
guish fresh  food  from  tainted.' 


1 60 


SERMONES 


[2,  2,  54 


putet  aper  rhombusque  recens,  mala  copia  quando 
aegrum  sollicitat  stomachum,  cum  rapula  plenus 
atque  acidas  mavolt  inulas.     Necdum  omnis  abacta 

45      pauperies  epulis  regum;  nam  vilibus  ovis 

nigrisque  est  oleis  hodie  locus.     Haud  ita  pridem 
Gallon!  praeconis  erat  acipensere  mensa 
infamis.     Quid  ?  turn  rhombos  minus  aequor  alebatf 
Tutus  erat  rhombus,  tutoque  ciconia  nido, 

50     donee  vos  auctor  docuit  praetorius.     Ergo 
si  quis  nunc  merges  suavis  edixerit  assos, 
parebit  pravi  docilis  Romana  iuventus. 

Sordidus  a  tenui  victu  distabit,  Ofello 
iudice;  nam  frustra  vitium  vitaveris  illud, 


42.  quando:  since ;  the  more 
common  use  in  Horace. 

43 f .  sollicitat :  disturbs,troubles. 
—  rapula,  inulas :  radishes  and 
pickles.  The  root  of  the  elecam- 
pane (inula)  is  no  longer  used  as 
a  food.  —  Necdum :  not  even  yet ; 
i.e. '  we  still  use  some  simple  kinds 
of  food,  for  it  is  not  so  very  long 
ago  that  these  absurd  fashions 
were  introduced.' 

45.  pauperies :  plain  food,  the 
food  of  a  poor  man ;  contrasted 
with  region,  the  rich. 

46-52.  '  It  is  not  long  since  the 
introduction  of  the  sturgeon  made 
Gallonius  notorious.  Now  a  tur- 
bot  or  a  stork  is  the  proper  thing 
for  a  fine  dinner.  Such  fashions 
have  not  even  the  excuse  of  a 
love  of  good  food  ;  they  are  noth- 
ing but  silly  caprices.'  —  Gallon!: 
Publius  Gallonius,  satirized  by 
Lucilius  for  having  set  the  fashion 


of  serving  a  large  sturgeon  at  din- 
ner. —  Quid  ?  .  .  .  alebat :  the 
exclamation  of  a  person  to  whom 
the  present  fashion  of  having  tur- 
bot  for  a  fish-course  seems  like  a 
law  of  nature. — auctor  .  .  .  prae- 
torius :  his  name  is  variously  given 
by  the  Scholiasts,  who  quote  an 
anonymous  epigram  upon  him, 
alluding  to  his  setting  the  fashion 
of  eating  storks  and  to  his  defeat 
for  the  praetorship.  Praetorius 
would  then  be  ironical.  —  mergos : 
some  sea  bird  whose  flesh  was  not 
fit  for  eating.  —  edixerit :  issue  an 
edict,  as  a  praetor  did ;  another 
hit  at  the  auctor  praetorius.  — 
pravi  docilis :  quick  to  learn  cor- 
ruption. 

53  f.  *  But  Ofellus  did  not  rush 
to  the  other  extreme  ;  it  was  sim- 
plicity, not  stinginess,  that  he 
recommended.'  The  mention  of 
Ofellus  is  a  reminder  of  vss.  2  f. 


HOR.  SAT.  —  II 


161 


55] 


HORATI 


55      si  te  alio  pravum  detorseris.     Avidienus 

cui  Canis  ex  vero  ductum  cognomen  adhaeret, 
quinquennis  oleas  est  et  silvestria  corna, 
ac  nisi  mutatum  parcit  defundere  vinum,  et 
cuius  odorem  olei  nequeas  perferre,  licebit 

60      ille  repotia,  natalis,  aliosve  dierum 

festos  albatus  celebret,  cornu  ipse  bilibri 

caulibus  instillat,  veteris  non  parcus  aceti. 

Quali  igitur  victu  sapiens  utetur,  et  horura 

utrum  imitabitur  ?     Hac  urget  lupus,  hac  canis,  aiunt. 


55.  alio  :     adverb.  —  pravum : 
with  te,  but  to  be  rendered  freely. 
—  Avidienus:      a    coined     name, 
probably  with  a  vague  suggestion 
of  avidus,  in  spite  of  the  difference 
in  quantity. 

56.  Canis  :  i.e.  Kuan/ ;  a  depre- 
ciatory reference  to  the  rival  sect 
of  the  Cynics,  in  the  manner  of  a 
Stoic  preacher.  —  ex  vero  ductum : 
deservedly  applied,  based  on  the 
actual  facts   of   his    temper    and 
habits.     The   phrase  occurs  else- 
where ;  Plautus,  Stick.  242,  mine 
Miccotrogus  nomine  e  vero  vocor  ; 
Ovid,  Fast.  2,  859. 

57.  est :  from  edo.  —  silvestria 
corna:     i.e.    such    poor    food  as 
primitive    man    used    before  the 
cultivation   of    grain ;    cf.    Verg. 
Georg.  i,  i,  147  ff. 

58.  mutatum :  turned,  soured. 

59.  olei :     attracted    from    the 
ace.  after  instillat  into  the  relative 
clause.  —  licebit :      paratactically 
with    celebret ;     there    are    many 
cases  where  the  pres.  licet  is  felt 


as  a  verb  rather  than  as  a  con- 
junction. 

60.  repotia :     wedding  feasts, 
occasions   when  the  best  of  food 
would  be  served. 

61.  albatus:  wearing  the  white 
toga  of  ceremony ;    he  would  ob- 
serve  the  proprieties   where  the 
observance  cost  nothing.  —  cornu 
.  .  .  bilibri :  i.e.  the  oil  was  served 
in  a  large  vessel  of  the  cheapest 
material,  instead  ota.gnttus  (Sat. 
I,  6,  1 1 8),  and  the  host  poured  it 
with  his  own  hand  (ipse}  drop  by 
drop  (instillat)  that  there  might 
be  no  waste. 

62.  veteris  .  .  .  aceti :  the 
point  of  this  is  not  quite  clear. 
Old  vinegar  is  better  than  new ; 
the  implication  may  be  that  he 
was  generous  only  with  vinegar, 
which  was  cheaper  than  oil,  or 
this  may  be,  as  the  Scholiast  says, 
a  joke  of  the  kind  called  Trapu 
Trpoo-So/aav,  the  substitution  ot 
aceti  for  an  expected  vini. 

64.   aiunt:  as  the  say  ing  is.  The 


162 


[2,  2,  77 


63      Mundus  erit,  qua  non  offendat  sordibus,  atque 

in  neutram  partem  cultus  miser.     Hie  neque  servis, 
Albuci  senis  exemplo,  dum  munia  didit, 
saevus  erit,  nee  sic  ut  simplex  Naevius  unctam 
convivis  praebebit  aquam  ;  vitium  hoc  quoque  magnum. 

70         Accipe  nunc  victus  tenuis  quae  quantaque  secum 
adferat.     In  primis  valeas  bene  :  nam  variae  res 
ut  noceant  homini  credas,  memor  illius  escae 
quae  simplex  olim  tibi  sederit;  at  simul  assis 
miscueris  elixa,  simul  conchylia  turdis, 

75      dulcia  se  in  bilem  vertent,  stomachoque  tumultum 
lenta  feret  pituita.     Vides  ut  pallidus  omnis 
cena  desurgat  dubia  ?     Quin  corpus  onustum 


verb  aiunt  is  often  used  paren- 
thetically in  the  quotation  of  a 
proverb. 

65.  Mundus  erit,  qua :  '  the  phi- 
losopher will  be  refined  in  his  way 
of  living,  but  will  not  carry  refine- 
ment to  such  an  extreme  that  it 
will  seem  to  be  mere  stinginess. ' 
The  meaning  of  mundus  (inundi- 
tia)  is  limited  in  the  same  way  in 
Sat.  i,  2,  123  and  in  Cic.  de  Off. 
i,  36,  130;  cf.  also  Carm.  2,  10, 

5ff- 

66.  cultus :  with  miser,  anxious 
about  his  way  of  living. 

67-69.  Albucius  (not  to  be 
connected  with  the  Albucius  of 
Sat.  2,  i,  48)  is  so  overanxious  to 
have  all  the  service  at  dinner 
perfect  that  he  scolds  his  servants 
even  when  he  is  assigning  their 
duties  ;  Naevius  (a  mere  name)  is 
so  careless  that  he  allows  his 
slaves  to  be  slovenly.  —  unctam 


.  .  .  aquam:  greasy  water  for 
rinsing  the  hands  after  the  meal. 
—  vitium  .  .  .  magnum :  this 
solemn  condemnation  of  a  rather 
trifling  fault  (cf.  Sat.  I,  3,  80  f. 
and  Sat.  2,  8)  comes  with  bur- 
lesque effect  from  the  lips  of  an 
old  farmer. 

71.  valeas:  potential,  as  is 
credas  in  the  next  line,  with 
protases  implied  in  the  general 
sense  and  in  memor,  if  you  recall. 

73.  sederit:  like  the  colloquial 
English  'to  set  well  on  the 
stomach.' 

75  f .  dulcia,  bilem,  lenta  pituita : 
phrases  of  popular  physiology,  to 
describe  indigestion.  Pituita  is 
in  three  syllables. 

77.  cena  .  .  .  dubia :  a  quota- 
tion from  Terence,  Phorm.  342, 
'  cena  dubia  adponitur.  ||  quid  istuc 
verbi  est  ?  ||  ubi  tu  dubites  quid 
sumas  potissumum,1  i.e.  a  dinner 


163 


2,  2,  78] 


HORATI 


hesternis  vitiis  animum  quoque  praegravat  una, 
atque  affigit  humo  divinae  particulam  aurae. 

80      Alter,  ubi  dicto  citius  curata  sopori 

membra  dedit,  vegetus  praescripta  ad  munia  surgit. 
Hie  tamen  ad  melius  poterit  transcurrere  quondam, 
sive  diem  festum  rediens  advexerit  annus, 
seu  recreare  volet  tenuatum  corpus,  ubique 

85      accedent  anni  et  tractari  mollius  aetas 

imbecilla  volet ;  tibi  quidnam  accedet  ad  istatn 
quam  puer  et  validus  praesumis  mollitiem,  seu 
dura  valetudo  incident  seu  tarda  senectus  ? 


so  good  that  you  don't  know 
what  to  take  first.  —  Quin  :  cor- 
rective, as  often,  of  the  inade- 
quacy of  the  previous  sentence ; 
nay  more. 

78  f .  vitiis :  excesses  in  eating, 
as  in  vs.  21.  —  The  conception  of 
the  soul  as  a  part  of  the  divine 
spirit  imprisoned  within  the  body 
is  often  expressed  in  Latin  litera- 
ture ;  it  was  a  fundamental  doctrine 
of  Stoic  philosophy  and  is  intro- 
duced here,  in  words  that  are  inten- 
tionally too  elevated  for  the  context 
and  the  speaker,  to  give  a  burlesque 
of  the  Stoic  preacher. 

80  f .  Alter :  the  philosopher, 
the  man  of  simple  habits.  — dicto 
citius :  a  colloquialism,  with  the 
exaggeration  common  in  the  lan- 
guage of  conversation.  —  curata 
membra  :  i.e.  he  refreshes  himself 
with  supper ;  cf.  corpora  curare, 
cibo  se  curare  and  the  frequent  use 
of  membra  of  health  or  strength. 
e.g.Sat.  i,  i,  5.  The  whole  phrase 


curata  .  .  .  dedit  goes  together, 
as  the  order  suggests,  and  dicto 
citius  goes  with  the  whole ;  '  in 
less  time  than  it  takes  me  to  tell 
it  he  has  had  his  supper  and 
fallen  asleep.' 

82-88.  '  A  man  who  lives  ordi- 
narily on  plain  fare  can  indulge 
himself  on  occasion,  but  the  man 
who  is  always  self-indulgent  has 
exhausted  his  possibilities  of 
pleasure.' 

82.  Hie:  referring  to  alter.— 
tamen :  in  spite  of  his  habitual 
self-restraint. 

83-84.  sive  .  .  .  seu  .  .  . 
ubique :  three  reasons  for  re- 
laxation, a  feast-day,  illness,  old 
age.  To  avoid  a  too  elaborate 
accuracy  in  expression,  a  different 
conjunction,  ubi-que  for  sz-ve, 
is  used  to  introduce  the  third 
clause. 

87.  praesumis  :  'take  before 
the  time,  allow  yourself  pre- 
maturely.' 


164 


SERMONES 


[2,  2,  99 


Rancidum  aprum  antiqui  laudabant,  non  quia  nasus 
90     illis  nullus  erat,  sed,  credo,  hac  mente,  quod  hospes 
tardius  adveniens  vitiatum  commodius  quam 
integrumedax  dominus  consumeret     Hos  utinam  inter 
heroas  natum  tellus  me  prima  tulisset ! 
Das  aliquid  famae,  quae  carmine  gratior  aurem 
95      occupat  humanam  ?     Grandes  rhombi  patinaeque 
grande  ferunt  una  cum  damno  dedecus  ;  adde 
iratum  patruum,  vicinos,  te  tibi  iniquum 
et  frustra  mortis  cupidum,  cum  derit  egenti 
as,  laquei  pretium.     'lure,'  inquit, .'  Trausius  istis 


89-93.  '  The  economical  farmer 
will  always  have  a  reserve  of  food 
—  even  though  it  may  not  be  of 
the  freshest  —  for  a  chance  guest.' 

89  f .  Rancidum  .  .  .  laudabant : 
intentionally  put  in  a  paradoxical 
form  in  order  to  burlesque  the 
seriousness  of  the  speaker.  —  non 
quia  .  .  .  sed  quod :  there  is  no 
difference  between  quia  and  quod 
in  this  form  of  sentence,  but  the 
subjv.  is  used  in  the  second  clause 
because  it  gives  the  motive  of  the 
antiqui. 

91  f.  vitiatum:  =  rancidum. — 
integrum:  with  double  meaning, 
'the  whole  of  it  while  it  was  still 
fresh.'  —  commodius  :  i.e.  they 
thought  it  more  suitable,  they 
praised  such  conduct  more. 

93.  The  wish  is,  of  course, 
comic,  though  the  Stoic  is  repre- 
sented as  uttering  it  in  all  serious- 
ness. Cf.  •vitium  .  .  .  magnum,  vs. 
69. 

94-99.   '  A    display    of    luxury 


brings  notoriety  and,  in  the  end, 
ruin.1  —  Das  aliquid  :  i.e.  '  Do  you 
consider  that  a  good  name  is  of 
some  account  ? '  —  patruum :  the 
uncle  is  in  Latin  literature  a  type 
of  severity,  so  that  patruus  in  Sat. 
2,  3,  88,  ne  sis  patruus  mihi,  be- 
comes almost  equal  to  iniquus. 
—  iniquum :  hateful.  —  derit : 
=  de-erit.  —  laquei  pretium :  a 
standing  comic  situation  (e.g. 
Plaut.  Pseud.  88  f.),  in  which  a 
bankrupt  tries  to  borrow  a  penny  to 
buy  rope  enough  to  hang  himself. 

99-111.  'You  may  think  that 
your  income  is  sufficient  for  any 
expenses,  but  —  if  you  do  not  care 
to  bestow  any  of  it  upon  others  — 
all  men  suffer  losses  and  your 
course  of  life  is  a  poor  preparation 
for  meeting  misfortune.' 

99.  Trausius  :  unknown  ;  a  mere 
name  to  represent  a  man  who  lives 
beyond  his  income.  For  the  form 
of  argument,  which  is  a  favorite 
one  with  Horace,  cf.  Sat.  1,4,  53 : 


165 


2,  2,  100] 


HORATI 


100    iurgatur  verbis ;  ego  vectigalia  magna 

divitiasque  habeo  tribus  amplas  regibus.'     Ergo 
quod  superat  non  est  melius  quo  insumere  possis  ? 
Cur  eget  indignus  quisquam  te  divite  ?     Quare 
templa  ruunt  antiqua  deum  ?     Cur,  improbe,  carae 

105     non  aliquid  patriae  tanto  emetiris  acervo  ? 
Vni  nimirum  recte  tibi  semper  erunt  res, 
o  magnus  posthac  inimicis  risus !     Vterne 
ad  casus  dubios  fidet  sibi  certius,  hie  qui 
pluribus  adsuerit  mentem  corpusque  superbum, 

no    an  qui  contentus  parvo  metuensque  futuri 
in  pace,  ut  sapiens,  aptarit  idonea  bello  ? 

Quo  magis  bis  credas,  puer  hunc  ego  parvus  Ofellum 


I,  10,  5;  i,  10,  21-23.  It  consists 
in  the  mere  mention  of  a  name 
which  suggests  circumstances  that 
refute  the  previous  statement. 

1 02.  quod  superat :  your  sur- 
plus.—  non  .  .  .  possis:  construe 
non  est  quo  melius,  etc. 

103-105.  Exhortations  to  charity 
or  to  the  giving  of  money  to  public 
objects  are  less  common  in  classic 
literature  than  in  modern  times  (cf., 
however,  Carm.  2,  15,  18  ff. ;  3,  6, 
2  ff. ;  Cic.  de  Off.  3,  1 5, 63) ,  but  such 
donations  to  individuals  and  to  com- 
munities were  not  uncommon.  Cf., 
e.g..  Sat.  1,9,  1 8  note  ;  and  Pliny's 
endowment  of  a  library  (Epist.  I, 
8,  2)  and  of  a  school  (4,  13,  5). 

106.  Vni :  with  emphatic  irony  ; 
'  Do   you   expect  to   be  the   only 
exception   to  the   general   law  of 
change  in  human  fortunes?' 

107.  Vterne :   the  interrogative 
~ne  is  occasionally  appended  even 


to  interrogative  pronouns  ;  so  2,  3, 

295>  317. 

109.  pluribus  :'  to  superfluities, 
to  a  variety  of  luxuries.'  —  super- 
bum  :  with  predicate  force ;  '  and 
thereby  have  made  them  his  mas- 
ters.' 

in.  This  is  a  reference  to  a 
proverbial  saying, (  in  time  of  peace 
prepare  for  war,'  which  appears  in 
Latin  in  various  forms  (si  vis  pa- 
cem,  para  bellunt)  and,  like  other 
proverbs,  is  still  accepted  by  the 
unsophisticated  as  the  essence  of 
wisdom. 

112-115.  At  this  point  Horace 
assumes,  more  distinctly  than  in 
vss.  2  f.  and  53.  the  person  of  the 
narrator,  adding  to  the  effective- 
ness of  the  closing  argument  (guo 
magi's  his  credas)  by  personal  remi- 
niscence (puer  ego  parvits)  and 
specific  details  (nunc  accisis,  me- 
tato,  tnercede).  The  skill  of  the 


166 


SERMONES 


[2,  2.  124 


integris  opibus  novi  non  latius  usum 

quam  nunc  accisis.     Videas  metato  in  agello 

115    cum  pecore  et  gnatis  fortem  mercede  colonum, 
'  Non  ego,'  narrantem,  '  temere  edi  luce  profesta 
quicquam  praeter  olus  f  umosae  cum  pede  pernae. 
Ac  mihi  seu  longum  post  tempus  venerat  hospes, 
sive  operum  vacuo  gratus  conviva  per  imbrem 

120    vicinus,  bene  erat  non  piscibus  urbe  petitis, 

sed  pullo  atque  haedo ;  turn  pensilis  uva  secundas 
et  mix  ornabat  mensas  cum  duplice  ficu. 
Post  hoc  ludus  erat  culpa  potare  magistra, 
ac  venerata  Ceres,  ita  culmo  surgeret  alto, 


artifice  is  so  great  that  many  com- 
mentators have  taken  it  for  reality, 
but  cf.  Sat.  2,  6,  1 1  f.  for  a  similar, 
though  less  detailed,  reference.  — 
latius:  so  Juv.  14,  234,  indul- 
gent sibi  latius ;  angustus  is  fre- 
quently used  of  the  opposite.  — 
metato  :  i.e.  measured  by  the  land- 
commissioners  appointed  to  survey 
and  apportion  confiscated  land  ;  as 
in  ordinary  circumstances  farms 
were  marked  by  boundary  stones 
and  not  surveyed,  the  verb  metari 
came  to  be  used  especially  of  the 
surveys  preliminary  to  confiscation 
and  allotment.  —  mercede :  i.e.  the 
new  proprietor  hired  the  former 
owner  to  carry  on  the  farm. 

116.  Non  .  .  .temere:  not  with- 
out reason,  only  when  there  was 
some  special  reason  ;  the  ordinary 
sense  of  non  (haud)  temere. 

118  ff.  '  Even  on  the  rare  occa- 
sions our  food  was  still  simple.'  — 
hospes :  a  guest  from  a  distance, 


who  came  infrequently  (longum 
post  tempus) .  —  vicinus :  the  cele- 
brating of  a  neighbor's  visit  is 
excused  by  the  additional  circum- 
stances, operum  vacua,  per  im- 
brem. —  pensilis  uva  :  raisins.  — 
duplice  ficu :  split  for  drying.  The 
point  is  that  only  the  products  of 
the  farm  were  used,  even  for  special 
occasions ;  cf.  dapes  inemptas, 
Epod.  2,  48. 

123.  Post  hoc:   the  wine  was 
served  according  to  the  country 
custom  after  the  dessert  (secundae 
mensae),  and  was  drunk  without 
the  formal  etiquette  of  elaborate 
dinners   (cf.   Sat.  2,   6,  67   ff.)  ; 
instead   of    selecting   a   magister 
bibendi  to  regulate  their  drinking, 
they  were  governed  only  by  their 
own  sense  of  propriety  (culpa). 

124.  ita  ...  surgeret :   the  in- 
direct form  of  the  prayer  ita  Ceres 
surgat  or  ita  tu  surgas,  often  fol- 
lowed by  a  statement  of  some  evi- 


167 


2,2,125]  HORATI 

125    explicuit  vino  contractae  seria  frontis. 

Saeviat  atque  novos  moveat  Fortuna  tumultus, 
quantum  hinc  imminuet  ?     Quanto  aut  ego  parcius  aut 

vos, 

o  pueri,  nituistis,  ut  hue  novus  incola  venit  ? 
Nam  propriae  telluris  erum  natura  neque  ilium 

130    nee  me  nee  quemquam  statuit :  nos  expulit  ille, 
ilium  aut  nequities  aut  vafri  inscitia  iuris, 
postremum  expellet  certe  vivacior  heres. 
Nunc  ager  Vmbreni  sub  nomine,  nuper  Ofelli 
dictus,  erit  nulli  proprius,  sed  cedet  in  usum 

135    nunc  mihi,  nunc  alii.     Quocirca  vivite  fortes, 
fortiaque  adversis  opponite  pectora  rebus.' 

dent  truth  in  an  «/-clause.     Cf.  there  is  abundant  evidence  that 

Sat.  2,  3,  300;  Carm.   i,  3,  r  ff.  the  veterans  who  were  suddenly 

'  And  the  wine  that  we  drank  as  changed  from  soldiers  to  farmers 

we  prayed  to  Ceres,  "  so  may  you  often  made  but  poor  use  of  their 

rise  on  the  high  stalk,"  smoothed  property,  managing  it  badly,  fall- 

the  wrinkles  from  our  brows.'  ing  into  debt,  and  suffering,  per- 

126.    tumultus  :  like  the  dissen-  haps  unfairly,  from  their  ignorance 

sions  that  preceded  Philippi  and  of  civil  life. 

resulted  in  the  confiscation  of  the  132.   postremum :     ace.    masc. 

farm  of  Vergil's  father.  with  ilium  ;  but  translate,  at  last. 

128.  pueri :  his  sons,  gathered  134.   proprius  :  contrasted  with 
about  him  as  he  watches  the  herds  cedet  in  usum;  we  merely  use  our 
(vs.    115).  —  novus    incola:    Urn-  possessions,  we  do  not  really  own 
brenus,  the  veteran  to  whom  the  them. 

farm  had  been  allotted.  135  f .    These  lines  return  to  the 

129.  propriae:     predicate;     to      thought  of  vss.  107-111,  as  if  to 
hold  it  as  his  own.  prove  by  an  example  the  general 

131.   nequities,    inscitia    iuris:       statement  made  there. 

3 

The  allusion  in  vs.  185,  plausus  quos  fert  Agrippa,  shows  that  the 
satire  was  written  as  late  as  the  year  33  B.C.,  when  Agrippa,  as  aedile, 
gave  the  games  with  unusual  splendor.  The  reference  to  the  Saturnalia 

1 63 


SERMONES  [2,  3 

(vs.  5)  Axes  the  time  of  year  when  the  dialogue  is  supposed  to  take 
place,  but  indicates  nothing  in  regard  to  the  time  when  it  was  composed. 

In  structure  tnis  is  the  most  carefully  arranged  of  all  the  satires.  The 
main  body  is  a  sermon  by  the  philosopher  Stertinius  (alluded  to  in  Epist. 
i,  12,  20,  but  otherwise  unknown  to  us)  upon  the  Stoic  Paradox  iras 
a<£pwv  fjMivtTai,  that  all  men  except  the  Stoic  philosopher  are  mad. 
The  discourse  is  carefully  divided  into  four  parts,  taking  up  in  turn  the 
avaricious  (82-157),  the  ambitious  (158-223),  the  self-indulgent  (224- 
246,  with  a  special  subdivision,  247-280,  for  the  amorous),  and  the  super- 
stitious (281-295).  There  is  a  brief  introduction  (77-81)  and  a 
corresponding  conclusion  (296-299).  This  discourse  is  repeated  to 
Horace  by  Damasippus,  a  recent  convert  to  Stoicism,  whose  character 
and  circumstances  are  admirably  adapted  to  his  part.  He  had  been  a 
collector  of  antique  bronzes  and  a  dealer  in  real  estate  and  is  alluded 
to  by  Cicero  (ad  Fam.  7,  23,  2  ;  ad  Att.  12,  29,  2  ;  12,  33,  i)  in  connec- 
tion with  the  purchase  of  statuary  and  of  land  for  gardens.  But  he  had 
afterward  failed  in  business  and  in  his  despair  was  about  to  throw  him- 
self into  the  Tiber,  when  he  was  saved  by  the  intervention  of  Stertinius. 
The  logical  reasoning  by  which  Stertinius  convinced  him  that  his  mo- 
tive for  suicide  was  insufficient  is  an  excellent  bit  of  philosophical  fool- 
ing and  serves  as  an  introduction  to  the  main  sermon. 

The  circumstances  which  brought  Damasippus  into  contact  with 
Horace  are  disclosed  in  a  brief  introductory  dialogue  (1-31).  Horace 
represents  himself  as  having  gone  out  to  his  quiet  Sabine  farm  at  the 
time  of  the  Saturnalia  to  escape  the  Christmas  festivities  and  to  do  some 
work.  But  the  work  had  been  postponed  and  he  was  sitting  in  his 
study  dozing  atter  a  good  dinner  (vini  somnique  benignus),  when 
Damasippus  burst  in  upon  him,  uninvited,  having  come  out  from  the 
city  full  of  zeal  to  rouse  him  from  his  laziness.  To  his  exhortations 
Horace  replies  with  good-natured  irony  in  a  rather  superior  tone  and 
finally  submits  to  a  recital  of  the  long  sermon.  When  it  is  over  (300- 
326),  he  rouses  himself  to  make  further  ironical  remarks,  to  which 
Damasippus  replies  with  such  point  that  Horace  for  a  moment  loses  his 
temper  and  then  surrenders,  acknowledging  himself  to  be  as  great  a 
madman  —  almost  —  as  his  visitor.  The  opening  and  the  closing  bits 
of  dialogue  thus  form  a  framework  for  the  main  body  of  the  satire.  • 

To  the  carefulness  in  construction  an  equal  care  in  expression  has 
been  added.  There  are  few  passages  where  the  thought  is  not  clearly 
expressed  and  there  are  many  of  special  excellence,  like  the  farcical 
scene  from  the  camp  before  Troy  (187-207),  a  forerunner  of  Sat.  2.  5, 
or  the  brilliant  paraphrase  of  the  first  lines  of  the  Eunuchus  (262-271). 

169 


2,  3,  i]  HORATI 

The  synonyms  for  insanus  collected  by  Teuffel  (furiosus,  excors,  delirus, 
atnens,  amentia  versatus,  demens,  cerritus,  commotus,  commotac  mentis, 
ntentem  concussus,  male  tutae  mentis,  putidi  cerebri)  are  evidence  of  the 
pains  taken  to  avoid  monotony. 

As  to  the  underlying  motive  of  the  satire,  it  seems  probable  that  the 
accusations  of  idleness  in  the  opening  lines  were  not  without  founda- 
tion. After  the  publication  of  the  First  Book  there  was  probably  a 
period  in  which  Horace  was  disinclined  to  go  on  with  precisely  the 
same  kind  of  writing  and  was  perhaps  turning  toward  lyric  poetry. 
During  this  time  of  hesitation  he  may  well  have  seemed  to  be  occupied 
with  his  farm  (307^)  and  to  have  abandoned  his  literary  ambitions. 
To  the  doubts  of  his  friends  and  the  criticisms  of  his  enemies  this  long 
and  carefully  constructed  satire  was  intended  to  be  a  reply.  At  the 
same  time  it  is,  even  more  distinctly  than  Sat.  2,  2,  an  attempt  to  touch 
the  follies  of  mankind  with  a  lighter  touch.  The  burlesque  of  Stoic 
formalism  and  solemnity  runs  through  the  whole  and  is  in  many  places 
worked  out  in  detail,  so  that  the  satire  might  well  be  taken  to  be  a  satire 
upon  that  sect.  On  the  other  hand,  however,  the  absurdities  and  follies 
which  are  the  subject-matter  are  equally  the  objects  of  attack,  but  they 
are  made  ridiculous  by  exaggeration  rather  than  reproved.  If  the  first 
part  of  the  sermon  of  Stertinius  (vss.  82-157)  be  compared  with  Sat.  I,  I, 
which  deals  with  the  same  subject,  the  difference  in  manner  will  be 
apparent.  There  is  in  this  satire  none  of  the  direct  argument  which 
gives  a  serious  tone  to  Sat.  I,  I  ;  the  sermon  of  Stertinius  is  a  series  of 
absurd  illustrations,  —  Staberius,  Aristippus,  the  senseless  miser,  Orestes, 
Opimius,  —  which  ridicule  avarice  by  presenting  it  in  its  extremest  forms. 
In  short,  the  genial  raillery  of  Horace  is  here  directed  by  turns  upon 
the  preacher,  upon  the  congregation,  and  upon  the  satirist  himself. 

Damasippus.    Sic  raro  scribis,  ut  toto  non  quater  annc 
membranam  poscas,  scriptorum  quaeque  retexens, 
iratus  tibi,  quod,  vini  somnique  benignus, 
nil  dignum  sermone  canas.     Quid  fiet  ?     At  ipsis 

1.  scribis :  the  final  long  sylla-  material  could  be  erased  and  cor- 
bie before  the  caesura  occurs  in  a  rections    made.  —  retexens  :     nn- 
few  other  places  ;  e.g.  Sat.  I,  4, 82.  raveling,   with   a   change    in    the 

2.  membranam :  the  parchment  figure  to  weaving.  —  scriptorum: 
upon  which  the  rough  draft  was  neut.,  partitive  gen. 

written   out;    writing   upon   this  4.  dignum  sermone  :  worth  talk- 

170 


SERMONES 


Saturnalibus  hue  fugisti.     Sobrius  ergo 

die  aliquid  dignum  promissis  !     Incipe  !     Nil  est. 

Culpantur  frustra  calami,  immeritusque  laborat 

iratis  natus  paries  dis  atque  poetis. 

Atqui  voltus  erat  multa  et  praeclara  minantis, 

si  vacuum  tepido  cepisset  villula  tecto. 

Quorsum  pertinuit  stipare  Platona  Menandro, 

Eupolin,  Archilochum,  comites  educere  tantos  ? 

Invidiam  placare  paras  virtue  relicta  ? 

Contemnere,  miser !     Vitanda  est  improba  Siren 

desidia,  aut  quicquid  vita  meliore  parasti 


ing  about ;  likely  to  increase  your 
reputation.  —  Quid  fiet :  'what  is  to 
be  the  outcome  ? 

5.  Saturnalibus  :  this  feast  be- 
gan on  Dec.  17  and  was  pro- 
longed for  several  days.  It  was 
a  time  of  feasting,  of  the  giving  of 
presents,  and  of  special  freedom 
for  slaves.  —  hue  :  to  his  farm.  — 
Sobrius  ergo :  '  well  then,  since 
you  have  chosen  to  keep  out  of 
the  festivities.' 

6-8.  To  the  absurd  exhortation 
to  sit  down  at  once  and  begin  a 
poem  Horace  of  course  makes  no 
response  and  Damasippus  hastens 
to  forestall  his  excuses :  '  There 
is  no  use  in  blaming  the  pens 
or  in  pounding  the  wall,  which 
doesn't  deserve  to  bear  the  re- 
sponsibility.' —  iratis  natus  dis  : 
i.e.  under  unfortunate  auspices ; 
cf.  Sat.  i,  5,  97  f.,  Gnatia  lymphis 
iratis  exstructa. 

9  f .  'And  yet  just  recall  your 
determination  to  do  some  work 


if  you  could  only  escape  to  the 
quiet  of  your  farm.' 

ii  f.  The  Greek  writers  here 
named  are  poets ;  Eupolis.  Plato, 
and  Menander  as  representatives 
respectively  of  the  Old,  the  Middle, 
and  the  New  Comedy,  and  Archil- 
ochus  as  a  writer  of  iambics  like 
the  Epodes.  The  selection  of 
these  writers  is  meant  to  indicate 
that  Horace  was  turning  from 
satire,  in  the  traditional  Roman 
form,  toward  satirical  iambics.  — 
stipare :  of  packing  closely  in  his 
traveling-bags. 

13.  '  Are  you  preparing  to  pa- 
cify your  enemies  by  abandoning 
satire  ? '  To  the  Stoic  reformer 
the  earnest  satirist  seemed  a  kin- 
dred spirit  and  his  attacks  upon 
the  follies  of  men  seemed  a  virtus, 
almost  as  good  as  a  Stoic  sermon. 
15  f.  quicquid  .  .  .  parasti :  not 
exactly  his  fame  as  a  poet,  for 
which  the  Stoic  cared  nothing, 
but  his  standing  as  a  hortatory 


2.  3,  1 6] 


HOKATI 


ponendum    aequo   animo.     Hor.    Di   te,    Damasippe, 

deaeque 

verum  ob  consilium  donent  —  tonsore.     Sed  unde 
tarn  bene  me  nosti  ?     Dam.  Postquam  omnis  res  mea 

lanum 

ad  medium  fracta  est,  aliena  negotia  euro, 
20      excussus  propriis.     Olim  nam  quaerere  amabam, 
quo  vafer  ille  pedes  lavisset  Sisyphus  acre, 
quid  sculptum  inf  abre,  quid  f  usum  durius  esset ; 

reformer,  which  he  would  lose  if      the  phrase  '  in  Wall  Street.'  —  ali- 


he  turned  aside  to  the  mere  pret- 
tinesses  of  lyric  poetry.  —  aequo 
animo :  i.e.  '  with  such  composure 
as  you  can  muster.' 

16  f .  Di  .  .  .  deaeque  .  .  .  do- 
nent :  a  solemn  formula  in  wishes 
and  curses,  though  dent  or  duint 
is  the  more  common  verb.  —  ton- 
sore  :  i.e.  with  that  which  the 
philosopher,  with  his  long  beard, 
seemed  to  need  most.  The  reply 
is,  of  course,  an  expression  of  lazy 
irony,  in  the  utmost  possible  con- 
trast to  the  intense  earnestness  of 
Damasippus. 

17  f.  unde  .  .  .  nosti :  with  the 
implication,  under  the  form  of  a 
polite  question,  that  Damasippus 
was  entirely  mistaken. 

18-20.  lanum  ad  medium:  the 
same  words  are  used  by  Cicero  (de 
Off.  2,  24,  87)  of  a  part  of  the 
Forum  given  up  to  the  banking 
business,  near  the  middle  one  of 
three  arches.  Such  arches  were 
frequently  consecrated  to  Janus  as 
the  god  of  openings  (cf.  ianua). 
The  expression  would  then  be  like 


ena  negotia  euro :  a  hit  at  the  re- 
forming philosophers,  who  were 
thought  of  as  busybodies  in  other 
men's  matters.  The  phrase  must 
be  supposed  to  be  used  by  the 
Stoic  without  consciousness  of  its 
double  meaning,  though  Horace 
in  some  other  places  (cf.  vss.  28- 
30  and  note)  puts  into  the  mouth 
of  Damasippus  words  that  he  would 
hardly  have  used.  —  excussus:  the 
figure  is  that  of  a  man  knocked 
overboard  from  a  shipwrecked 
vessel,  a  figure  already  suggested 
by  fracta.  —  quaerere :  to  inves- 
tigate, as  a  skilled  expert  in  anti- 
quities. 

21.  Cf.  Sat.   I,  3,  90  f.     Both 
passages  touch  with  humorous  ex- 
aggeration the  inclination  of  col- 
lectors to  claim  a  fabulous  antiquity 
for  their  artistic  treasures.     Sisy- 
phus was  king  of  Corinth,  the  cen- 
ter of  artistic  work  in  bronze. 

22.  sculptum     inf  abre,     fusum 
durius  :    the  unskilful  carving  and 
hard  (i.e.  stiff  and  formal)    cast- 
ing, though  they  were  defects  in 


172 


SERMONES 


[2.  3,  30 


callidus  huic  signo  ponebam  milia  centum ; 
hortos  egregiasque  domos  mercarier  unus 

25      cum  lucro  noram ;  unde  frequentia  Mercuriale 
imposuere  mihi  cognomen  compita.     Hor.  Novi, 
et  miror  morbi  purgatum  te  illius.     Dam.  Atqui 
emovit  veterem  mire  novus,  ut  solet,  in  cor 
traiecto  lateris  miseri  capitisve  dolere, 

30      ut  lethargicus  hie  cum  fit  pugil  et  medicum  urget. 


the  artistic  work,  were  evidence 
to  the  collector  of  the  antiquity 
of  the  piece  and,  therefore,  in  his 
eyes,  of  its  rarity  and  value. 

23.    huic  signo :  such  a  statue. 

—  milia   centum :    i.e.    the    large 
price   which   its  age  would  com- 
mand in  the  market. 

24-26.  unus  cum  lucro :  in  spite 
of  his  bankruptcy  and  his  adoption 
of  the  life  of  a  philosopher,  Dama- 
sippus  cannot  refrain  from  speaking 
with  pride  of  his  earlier  successes 
in  business.  —  frequentia  .  .  .  com- 
pita :  the  crowds  that  gathered  at 
the  street-corners,  where  statuary 
and  bronzes  were  sold  at  auction. 

—  Mercuriale  .  .  .  cognomen :  fa- 
vorite of  Mercury,   the   god    of 
trade    (merx).      But   Mercuriales 
•viri  (Carm.  2,   17,  29  f.)  means 
the   favorites   of  Mercury  as  the 
god  of  speech. 

27.  morbi :  Horace  jokingly 
uses  the  technical  term  morbus, 
a  translation  of  7ra$os,  which  was 
used  to  describe  any  form  of  pas- 
sion or  any  departure  from  calm 
philosophic  reason. 

28-30.  mire:  this  repeats  miror 


in  a  kind  of  unintentional  pun. 
Horace  had  used  miror  with  irony 
—  'a  surprising  cure';  Damasip- 
pus  in  his  well-meaning  eagerness 
overlooks  the  irony  and  uses  mire 
in  the  better  sense :  '  Oh,  but 
the  wonderful  thing  is  not  the 
cure  ;  it  is  this  new  interest,  which 
effected  the  cure,  that  is  so  won- 
derful.' But  it  is  scarcely  possible 
to  explain  in  the  same  way,  as  due 
to  the  blundering  eagerness  of  Da- 
masippus,  the  comparison  of  Stoi- 
cism to  a  morbusj  even  to  a  kind 
of  frenzy.  Though  Horace  has 
not  actually  put  the  word  into  the 
mouth  of  Damasippus,  the  expres- 
sion is  still  quite  clearly  incon- 
sistent with  his  character,  and  we 
must  say  that  Horace  has  here,  as 
perhaps  in  vss.  19  and  33,  failed 
to  make  the  speech  quite  con- 
sistent with  the  character  of  the 
speaker.  —  The  illustration  in  vs. 
30  —  'as  some  man  (lite)  in  a 
lethargy  suddenly  turns  boxer 
and  assaults  his  doctor'  —  is 
chosen  in  order  to  give  an  open- 
ing for  the  remark  in  vs.  31  and  to 
lead  up  to  the  subject  of  madness. 


173 


2,  3» 


HORATI 


Hor.    Dum  ne  quid  simile  huic,  esto  ut  libet.     Dam 

O  bone,  ne  te 

frustrere  ;  insanis  et  tu  stultique  prope  omnes, 
si  quid  Stertinius  veri  crepat,  unde  ego  mira 
descripsi  docilis  praecepta  haec,  tempore  quo  me 

35      solatus  iussit  sapientem  pascere  barbam 
atque  a  Fabricio  non  tristem  ponte  reverti. 
Nam,  male  re  gesta,  cum  vellem  mittere  operto 
me  capite  in  flumen,  dexter  stetit  et  '  Cave  faxis 
te  quicquam  indignum !  Pudor  '  inquit  '  te  malus  angit, 

40      insanos  qui  inter  vereare  insanus  haberi. 


31.  huic:    neut.,    referring    to 
fit  pugil  et   urget.      '  I    bar  such 
conduct  as  that ;  otherwise,  have 
it    your    own    way.'      The     im- 
plication of  course  is  that  Dama- 
sippus   is  liable   to  an  attack  of 
frenzy. 

32.  ne  te  frustrere :  doift  make 
a   mistake;    the  common  phrase 
is  ne  sis  frustra.  —  insanis  .  .  . 
omnes :    this   is   the    Stoic    Para- 
dox which  forms  the  text  of  the 
sermon. 

33.  crepat :  prates.     The  word 
is  contemptuous,  and  inconsistent 
with  296,  sapientium  octavus,  as 
with  the  general  attitude  of  Dama- 
sippus.      It    is   another    slip    on 
Horace's  part,  like  19  and  28. — 
unde :  a  quo. 

35.  sapientem  pascere  barbam  : 
put  first,  as  if  this  external   sign 
were    more    important    than    the 
thing   signified.     Cf.    Sat.    I,    3, 

133- 

36.  The  4>ons  Fabridus  is  .still 


standing,  with  an  inscription  re- 
cording the  fact  that  it  was  re- 
built by  L.  Fabricius,  in  the  year 
62  B.C.  —  non  tristem :  not  as 
he  had  come,  but  reconciled  to 
life. 

37  f.  operto  capite:  one  who 
devoted  himself  to  the  gods  of  the 
lower  world  covered  his  face ;  so 
Decius,  giving  up  his  life  to  win 
victory,  covered  his  head,  and 
(Livy, 4, 12,  \i)multi  .  .  .  captibus 
obvolutis  se  in  Tiber im  praecipita- 
verunt.  —  dexter :  the  side  of  good 
omen. — faxis:  an  old  form  (an 
optative  of  the  sigmatic  aorist) 
preserved  in  this  colloquial  com- 
bination with  cave ;  '  don't  do 
anything  unworthy.1  Horace  uses 
a  great  variety  of  forms  of  prohi- 
bition. 

39.  Pudor  .  .  .  malus :  not  ex- 
actly what  we  call  false  shame, 
but  a  sense  of  humiliation  which 
is  really  based  upon  a  mistake- 
Malus  is  fhf>  emphatic  word. 


174 


SERMONES 


[2,  3.  5° 


Primum  nam  inquiram  quid  sit  furere  :  hoc  si  erit  in  te 
solo,  nil  verbi  pereas  quin  fortiter  addam. 
Quern  mala  stultitia  et  quemcumque  inscitia  veri 
caecum  agit,  insanum  Chrysippi  porticus  et  grex 

45      autumat.     Haec  populos,  haec  magnos  formula  reges, 
excepto  sapiente,  tenet.     Nunc  accipe  quare 
desipiant  omnes  aeque  ac  tu,  qui  tibi  nomen 
insano  posuere.     Velut  silvis,  ubi  passim 
palantis  error  certo  de  tramite  pellit, 

50     ille  sinistrorsum,  hie  dextrorsum  abit,  unus  utrique 


41  ff.  These  lines  illustrate  the 
double  humor  of  the  whole  satire  ; 
they  analyze  the  universal  folly  of 
men  and  at  the  same  time  they 
exhibit  the  folly  of  the  Stoic  him- 
self, who  addresses  an  elaborate 
argument  to  a  man  about  to  com- 
mit suicide  and,  in  particular,  an 
argument  which  does  not  prove 
the  hearer  sane,  but  only  no  more 
insane  than  his  fellow-men. 

41.  Primum:    in   proper   Stoic 
style,  the  argument  begins  with  a 
definition.  —  furere  :    a    synonym 
tor  insanum  esse. 

42.  fortiter :  Stoic  teaching  did 
not  forbid  suicide  and  Stertinius 
treats  the  question  as  one  of  pure 
logic. 

43  f .  Quern :  add  -cumque  from 
the  following  quemcumque.  — 
stultitia,  inscitia :  these  are  not 
two  distinct  qualities,  but  stultitia 
is  the  general  term  of  which  in- 
scitia veri  is  a  particular  defini- 
tion, still  further  defined  by  caecum 
agit:  'madness  consists  in  being 


moved  by  blind  and  ignorant  im- 
pulse, instead  of  being  guided  by 
wisdom '  (the  opposite  of  stulti- 
tia). — Chrysippi :  Zeno  was  the 
founder  of  the  school,  which  took 
its  name  from  the  oroa,  the  Porch, 
where  he  taught.  Chrysippus  was 
the  greatest  of  Zeno's  successors 
and  was  often  spoken  of  as  the 
head  of  the  school.  —  grex :  not 
infrequently  used,  as  here,  of  a 
sect  of  philosophy,  usually  with  a 
slighting  tone.  It  is  hardly  a 
word  which  a  Stoic  would  have 
used  of  his  school.  Cf.  19,  28,  33 
and  notes. 

45  f .  formula :  the  definition 
just  given.  —  tenet :  covers,  in- 
cludes. —  Nunc :  introducing  the 
argument  based  on  the  definition 
and  corresponding  somewhat 
loosely  to  pritmtm,  41. 

50  f .  unus,  variis :  i.e.  the 
fundamental  error  is  the  same, 
inscitia  veri  caecum  agit,  though 
the  particular  manifestations  are 
different. 


«»  3.  50 


HORATI 


error,  sed  variis  illudit  partibus  :  hoc  te 
crede  modo  insanum,  nihilo  ut  sapientior  ille, 
qui  te  deridet,  caudam  trahat.     Est  genus  unum 
stultitiae  nihilum  metuenda  timentis,  ut  ignis, 

55      ut  rupis  fluviosque  in  campo  obstare  queratur ; 
alterum  et  huic  varum  et  nihilo  sapientius  ignis 
per  medios  fluviosque  ruentis :  clamet  arnica 
mater,  honesta  soror  cum  cognatis,  pater,  uxor, 
'  Hie  fossa  est  ingens,  hie  rupes  maxima,  serva! ' 

60      non  magis  audierit  quam  Fufius  ebrius  olim, 
cum  Ilionam  edormit,  Catienis  mille  ducentis 


51  f.  hoc  .  .  .  modo :  referring 
back  to  velut  and  also  forward  to 
ut ;  'just  as  in  the  woods  men 
stray  from  the  path  in  one  direc- 
tion or  another,  —  it  makes  no  dif- 
ference which  side,  —  so  you  must 
understand  your  own  madness, 
realizing  that  it  is  no  greater  than 
that  of  others.' 

53.  caudam    trahat :    the    ex- 
planation   of    the     Scholiast     is 
'  solent     enim     pueri     deridentes 
nescientibus  a  tergo  caudam  sus- 
pendere,   ut   velut  pecus   caudam 
trahant.'      The    conservatism ,  of 
boys  still   preserves  this  form  of 
humor. 

54.  nihilum :    with    metuenda, 
as    a   mere    negative.      Kiessling 
refers   to    the    statement  of   this 
thought  in  Xenophon,  Mem.  i,  i, 
14.  —  timentis  :  agreeing  with  stul- 
titiae, but  the  concrete  stultus  is 
so  plainly  implied  that  no  subject 
is  expressed  for  queratur  and  in 
the  next  sentence  the  abstract  is 


forgotten  and  ruentis  is  masc.,  as 
if  agreeing  with  stulti. 

55.  in  campo :  i.e.  on  perfectly 
clear  and  level  ground,  where  there 
are  no  fires  or  cliffs  or  rivers. 

56.  huic  varum  :  different  from 
this ;  vanes  seems  to  be  very  rare 
in    this   sense    and    perhaps   has 
some  humorous  effect. 

57.  arnica :    with  mater  ('  the 
mother  who  loves  him'),  to  bal- 
ance honesta  (<  whom  he  respects  ') 
with  soror. 

59.  fossa,  rupes :  substituted 
for  ignis,  fluvios,  merely  for  va- 
riety. 

60-62.  audierit:  apodosis  to 
the  protasis  expressed  without  si 
in  clamet.  — Fufius,  Ilionam,  Ca- 
tienis :  in  the  play  of  Pacuvius 
there  was  a  scene  in  which  the 
mother,  Iliona,  is  roused  from 
sleep  by  the  spirit  of  her  murdered 
son,  who  addresses  her  with  the 
words  mater,  te  adpello,  tu,  quae 
cur  am  somno  suspensam  levas; 


176 


SERMONES 


[2,  3,  67 


'Mater,  te  appello'  clamantibus.     Huic  ego  volgus 
error!  similem  cunctum  insanire  docebo. 
Insanit  veteres  statuas  Damasippus  ernendo  : 
65      integer  est  mentis  Damasippi  creditor  ?     Esto. 

'  Accipe  quod  numquam  reddas  mihi '  si  tibi  dicam, 
tune  insanus  eris  si  acceperis  ?  an  magis  excors 
mother    should     reply     age,      loaning   him  the   money  that   he 


the 

adsta,  mane,  audi.  But,  on  one 
occasion,  an  actor  named  Fufius, 
who  was  playing  the  part  of  Iliona, 
had  been  drinking  (ebrius)  and 
actually  fell  asleep,  so  that  the 
appeal  of  the  son  (played  by 
Catienus)  did  not  waken  him,  and 
the  audience,  seeing  the  situation, 
joined  in  repeating  the  first  words 
mater,  te  appello.  — Ilionam  edor- 
mit :  a  cognate  ace.,  like  Cyclopa 
saltare  (Sat.  i,  5,  63),  but  with  a 
humorous  effect ;  -was  sleeping  the 
Part  of  Iliona. — mille  ducentis  : 
twice  the  usual  round  number, 
sescenti. 

62  f.  Huic  .  .  .  error! :  refers 
back  to  49  and  51  ;  the  error  is 
inscitia  veri  (43),  the  failure  to 
see  things  as  they  really  are.  — 
similem :  sc.  errorem,  which 
would  be  a  cognate  ace.  after 
insanire. 

65.  integer  mentis  :  =  sanus.  — 
esto  :  i.e.  '  grant  it  for  the  moment 
and  then  see  what  absurdities  it 
leads  to.1  The  argument  is  that  if 
Damasippus  had  proved  himself  a 
madman,  as  his  creditors  declared, 
by  losing  money  in  speculation, 
then  the  creditors  had  still  more 
proved  themselves  madmen  by 


had  lost.  The  error  was  the  same, 
though  the  manifestations  of  it 
were  different. 

67  f .  excors :  =  insanus.  —  prae- 
sens  Mercurius :  a  creditor  who 
offered  money  with  the  full  under- 
standing that  it  was  never  to  be 
repaid  would  be  to  the  debtor  like 
the  very  god  of  riches  in  per- 
son. 

67-71.  These  words  are  ad- 
dressed to  the  lender  of  the  money 
and  the  general  sense  is  plain : 
'  take  all  the  precautions  you  can, 
ten  notes  or,  if  ten  are  not  enough, 
a  hundred,  a  thousand ;  yet  you 
must  certainly  know  that  your 
debtor  can  slip  through  them  all,  as 
Proteus  slips  through  all  bonds.' 
Nerius  is  the  banker  who  pays  over 
the  money  on  an  order  from  the 
creditor.  With  decent  some  gen- 
eral word  like  scripta  was  in 
Horace's  mind,  but  the  sentence 
is  interrupted  by  the  hasty  words 
non  est  satis  and  when  the  thought 
is  resumed,  tabulas  takes  the  place 
of  the  object ;  ten  copies  of  the 
entry  or  order  are  not  enough. 
Cicuta  is  a  money-lender  (referred 
to  only  here  and  in  vs.  175)  who 
is  especially  skilful  in  drawing  up 


177 


2,  3,  68] 


HORATI 


reiecta  praeda,  quam  praesens  Mercurius  fert? 

Scribe  decem  a  Nerio ;  non  est  satis  :  adde  Cicutae 
70      nodosi  tabulas  centum,  mille  adde  catenas: 

effugiet  tamen  haec  sceleratus  vincula  Proteus. 

Cum  rapies  in  ius  malis  ridentem  alienis, 

net  aper,  modo  avis,  modo  saxum,  et,  cum  volet,  arbor. 

Si  male  rem  gerere  insani  est,  contra  bene  sani, 
75      putidius  multo  cerebrum  est,  mihi  crede,  Perelli 

dictantis  quod  tu  numquam  rescribere  possis. 
Audire  atque  togam  iubeo  componere,  quisquis 

ambitione  mala  aut  argenti  pallet  amore, 


legally  binding  forms  of  obliga- 
tion ;  nodosi  and  catenas  express 
the  same  figure.  The  creditor  is 
not  named  here,  though,  as  the 
thought  becomes  more  definite 
(cf.  Sat.  i,  I,  15,  and  20),  he  is 
called  Perellius.  Proteus  is  the 
sea-god  who  prophesies  only  when 
he  is  caught  and  held  and  who 
changes  himself  into  many  forms 
(vs.  73)  to  escape  his  captor. 
[The  difficulty  of  this  passage 
centers  in  scribe  decem  a  Nerio, 
and  it  is  the  desire  to  make  the 
sense  of  the  whole  passage  square 
with  our  really  insufficient  knowl- 
edge of  the  technical  terms  and 
the  method  of  procedure  that  has 
led  Bentley  and  Kiessling  into 
forced  interpretations.] 

72.  malis  ridentem  alienis :  a 
parody  of  the  Homeric  01  8'  77817 
yvadfj.oi(Ti  •yeAwuiv  oAAorptounv 
\Od.  20,  347).  But  the  phrase, 
which  is  perhaps  proverbial,  oc- 
curs only  once  in  Homer,  and  the 


situation  there  is  highly  tragic  and 
dramatic ;  the  suitors  laughed  be- 
cause Athene  had  taken  away  their 
judgment,  but  woe  was  in  their 
hearts.  Some  such  sense  as  un- 
natural, hysterical  laughter  would 
perhaps  fit  both  passages,  but  it  is 
possible  that  Horace  merely  trans- 
lated the  phrase  literally,  with- 
out attaching  a  definite  meaning 
to  it. 

75  f .  putidius :  another  syno- 
nym for  insanius.  —  dictantis :  i.e. 
attending  carefully  to  the  exact 
wording  of  the  document.  —  re- 
scribere :  repay  by  another  written 
document;  cf.  scribe,  vs.  69. 

77-81.  The  introduction  to  the 
formal  sermon.  Both  in  the  elab- 
orate manner  and  in  the  matter 
it  is  a  parody  of  Stoic  teaching. 
It  is  addressed  to  other  hearers 
than  Damasippus,  but  it  is  not 
necessary  to  suppose  that  Horace 
meant  to  represent  Stertinius  as 
still  standing  on  the  pans  Fabri- 


I78 


SERMONES 


quisquis  luxuria  tristive  superstitione 
80     aut  alio  mentis  morbo  calet ;  hue  propius  me, 

dum  doceo  insanire  omnis  vos  ordine,  adite. 
Danda  est  ellebori  multo  pars  maxima  avaris ; 

nescio  an  Anticyram  ratio  illis  destinet  omnem. 

Heredes  Staberi  summam  incidere  sepulchre, 
85      ni  sic  fecissent,  gladiatorum  dare  centum 

damnati  populo  paria  atque  epulum  arbitrio  Arri, 


cms;  rather,  this  is  some  dis- 
course noted  down  at  a  later 
time  by  the  new  convert.  — 
togam  componere :  to  intimate 
that  the  sermon  was  to  be  a 
long  one.  —  ambitione :  this  is 
taken  up  second  in  the  discourse, 
though  here  named  first.  —  pallet : 
pale  with  the  chill  of  fear,  while 
calet  refers  to  the  fever  of  passion. 
—  omnis  vos  ordine  :  all from  first 
to  last ;  this  use  of  ordine  with 
omnis  is  colloquial  and  common 
in  Plautus  ;  Amph.  599,  Capt. 
377,  Most.  552,  etc.  \M.  G.  875, 
which  is  sometimes  referred  to  as 
evidence  that  ordine  goes  with 
doceo,  has  been  misunderstood  ; 
it  is  like  the  other  Plautine  pas- 
sages.] 

82  f .  ellebori :  hellebore  was  the 
recognized  medicine  for  cases  of 
insanity.  It  grew  especially  about 
Anticyra,  in  Phocis.  —  nescio  an : 
with  an  implication  of  the  affirm- 
ative, /  don't  know  but.  —  ratio : 
reason,  i.e.  philosophy,  as  in  Sat. 
i,  3,  78,  115;  here  with  special 
thought  of  philosophy  as  a  cure  of 
souls. 


84.  Staberi  :  unknown.  He 
need  not  have  been  a  real  per- 
son, but  one  such  inscription  is 
extant  and  the  rich  man  in  Pe- 
tronius  (71)  expresses  his  desire 
to  have  the  amount  of  his  fortune 
put  on  his  tombstone. 

85  f .  fecissent :  in  indirect  quo- 
tation from  the  will.  — damnati: 
the  technical  word  to  express  the 
penalty  for  failure  to  carry  out  the 
provisions  of  a  will ;  the  formula 
was  heres  meus  dare  damnas  (  = 
damnatus)  esto.  —  centum :  one 
hundred  pairs  of  gladiators  would 
be  a  very  large  number.  — arbi- 
trio Arri :  a  public  feast  that  would 
be  extravagant  enough  to  suit  even 
Q.  Arrius,  who  had  himself  given 
a  notoriously  extravagant  funeral 
feast.  —  frumenti :  a  third  penalty, 
a  distribution  of  grain,  as  much  as 
would  be  produced  in  a  season 
from  Egypt,  the  grain-produc- 
ing center  for  Italy.  The  three 
penalties  are  made  excessive 
in  order  to  express  the  anxiety 
of  Staberius  that  the  require- 
ment of  his  will  should  not  be 
neglected. 


179 


2,  3,  8?] 


HORATI 


frumenti  quantum  metit  Africa.     '  Sive  ego  prave 
seu  recte  hoc  volui,  ne  sis  patruus  mihi ; '  credo 
hoc  Staberi  prudentem  animum  vidisse.     Quid  ergo 

90      sensit,  cum  summam  patrimoni  insculpere  saxo 
heredes  voluit  ?     Quoad  vixit,  credidit  ingens 
pauperiem  vitium  et  cavit  nihil  acrius,  ut,  si 
forte  minus  locuples  uno  quadrante  perisset, 
ipse  videretur  sibi  nequior ;  omnis  enim  res, 

95      virtus,  fama,  decus,  divina  humanaque  pulchris 
divitiis  parent ;  quas  qui  construxerit,  ille 
clarus  erit,  fortis,  Justus.     Sapiensne  ?     Etiam,  et  rex, 
et  quicquid  volet.     Hoc,  veluti  virtute  paratum, 
speravit  magnae  laudi  fore.     Quid  simile  isti 


87  f .  Sive  ego :  a  direct  quota- 
tion from  the  will.  —  ne  sis  pa- 
truus :  don't  refuse  me ;  cf.  Sat.  2, 
2,  77  note. 

89  f.  hoc :  the  hesitation  of  his 
heirs  and  their  probable  desire  to 
avoid  a  requirement  which  they 
might  think  foplish  ;  sive  prave, 
seu  recte.  —  vidisse :  gets  from 
prudentem  the  sense  of  provi- 
disse ;  foresaw  in  his  wisdom.  — 
Quid  ergo  sensit :  well,  then,  what 
was  his  idea  f 

92.  ut :  a  clause  of  result,  with- 
out antecedent,  as  in  Sat.  I,  I,  96. 

94.  nequior:  i.e.  just  so  much 
the  worse  man  ;  he  measured  him- 
self by  his  success  in  business. 

05  f .  pulchris  divitiis  :  cf.  Sat. 
I,  i,  44,  quid  habet  pidchri  con- 
structus  acervus. 

97.  Sapiensne :  this  question 
is  interjected  by  the  speaker  to 


forestall  the  thought  of  a  hearer ; 
'  ah,  but  will  he  be  a  Stoic  phi- 
losopher ? '  and  the  question  is 
answered  in  the  affirmative  as  the 
strongest  possible  expression  of 
the  value  that  men  put  upon 
money.  The  best  commentary 
on  the  curt  questions  and  answers 
here  and  below,  158  ff.,  i87ff.,  is 
the  remark  of  Cicero  (Parad.  1,2). 
'Cato  .  .  .,  perfectus  mea  senten- 
tia  Stoicus,  .  .  .  minutis  inter- 
rogatiunculis,  quasi  punctis,  quod 
proposuit  efficit.'  —  On  the  Stoic 
Paradox  here  alluded  to  cf.  Sat. 
I,  3,  124  and  note.  —  Etiam  :  yes ; 
often  in  colloquial  Latin. 

99.  Quid  simile  isti :  i,e.  '  what 
is  the  likeness  (or  difference)  be- 
tween Staberius  and  Aristippus?' 
The  question  is  repeated  in  more 
definite  form  in  vs.  102,  uter  .  .  . 
insanior  f 


180 


SERMON ES 


[2,  3,  i  i  1 


too    Graecus  Aristippus?  qui  servos  proicere  aurum 
in  media  iussit  Libya,  quia  tardius  irent 
propter  onus  segnes.     Vter  est  insanior  horum  ? 
Nil  agit  exemplum,  litem  quod  lite  resolvit. 
Si  quis  emat  citharas,  emptas  comportet  in  unum, 

105    nee  studio  citharae  nee  musae  deditus  ulli, 
si  scalpra  et  f ormas  non  sutor,  nautica  vela 
aversus  mercaturis,  delirus  et  amens 
undique  dicatur  merito.     Qui  discrepat  istis 
qui  nummos  aurumque  recondit,  nescius  uti 

no    compositis,  metuensque  velut  contingere  sacrum  ? 
Si  quis  ad  ingentem  frumenti  semper  acervum 


too.  Aristippus :  of  the  town 
of  Cyrene,  the  founder  of  the 
Cyrenaic  (or  Hedonic)  school  of 
philosophy,  whose  fundamental 
doctrine  is  stated  by  Horace, 
Epist.  i,  i,  19,  et  mihi  res,  non  me 
regies,  subiungere  conor,  '  things 
were  made  for  man,  not  man  for 
things.1 

103.  'There  is  no  force  in  an 
illustration     which     proposes     to 
answer   one    question    by  asking 
another.1      The     introduction    of 
Aristippus  serves   the   same   pur- 
pose in  the  argument  as  the  men- 
tion of  Naevius  and  Nomentanus 
in  Sat.  i,  i,  101  f.,  and  the  reply 
there,  pergis pugnantia  secuin  .  .  . 
componere,  means   essentially  the 
same  thing  as  this  line. 

104.  emptas     comportet     in 
unum:  'and,  as  soon  as   he  has 
bought   them,  piles   them  up   to- 
gether,1   as    a    miser    stores    his 
money.     Cf.  Livy,  i,  5,  3,  latrones 


.  .  .  Remum  cepisse,  captum  regi 
Aeinulio  tradidisse. 

105.  musae  .  .  .  ulli:    to  any 
kind  of  music. 

106.  non  sutor :  though  he  was 
not  a  shoemaker. 

107.  aversus  mercaturis :  merely 
a  variation  in  phrase  for  non  naitta. 
The  mercator  was  a  trader  by  sea 
(Sat.  i,  i,  6). 

1 08.  undique:    on  all  sides,  i.e. 
by     everybody.  — Qui     discrepat 
istis :  exactly  the   same  in   effect 
as  quid  simile  isti  (99). 

109  f.  nummos  aurumque:  since 
the  coined  money  was  chiefly  silver, 
this  double  phrase  is  like  'silver 
and  gold,1  a  double  expression  for 
a  single  idea.  —  nescius  uti :  like 
nescis  quo  valeat  nummus  (Sat. 
i,  i,-  73),  as  metuens  .  .  .  sacrum 
repeats  tamqnain  parcere  sacris 
(Sat.  i,  i,  71). 

in  ff.  The  thought  of  this 
passage  —  that  mere  accumulation 


181 


2,3, 


HORATI 


porrectus  vigilet  cum  longo  f  uste,  neque  illinc 
audeat  esuriens  dominus  contingere  granum, 
ac  potius  foliis  parcus  vescatur  amaris  ; 

1 1 5    si  positis  intus  Chii  veterisque  Falerni 

mille  cadis  —  nihil  est,  tercentum  milibus  —  acre 
potet  acetum  ;  age,  si  et  stramentis  incubet,  unde- 
octoginta  annos  natus,  cui  stragula  vestis, 
blattarum  ac  tinearum  epulae,  putrescat  in  area: 

120    nimirum  insanus  paucis  videatur,  eo  quod 

maxima  pars  hominum  morbo  iactatur  eodem. 
Filius  aut  etiam  haec  libertus  ut  ebibat  heres, 
dis  inimice  senex,  custodis  ?     Ne  tibi  desit  ? 
Quantulum  enim  summae  curtabit  quisque  dierum, 


is  folly  —  is  much  like  parts  of 
Sat.  i,  I.  In  order  to  maintain 
the  Stoic  tone,  the  details  are 
carried  out  to  the  point  of  extrav- 
agance (114,  116,  125),  but  the 
underlying  idea  is  so  distinctly 
Horace's  own  that  the  fiction  of 
the  Stoic  preacher  is  almost  for- 
gotten. 

112.  porrectus  vigilet:  cf.  in- 
dormis  znhians,  Sat.  i,  i,  71.  . 

1 1 7  f .  acetum :  cf.  veteris  non 
farcus  aceti,  Sat.  2,  2,  62.  —  age  : 
as  if  a  new  and  still  more  striking 
illustration  had  suddenly  occurred 
to  him.  —  unde-octoginta  :  a  little 
more  emphatic  than  the  round 
number  would  be ;  '  just  short  of 
eighty,'  •'  all  but  eighty  years  old.' 

120.  paucis:  used  unexpect- 
edly instead  of  multis  or  omnibus, 
to  preserve  the  Stoic  doctrine  that 
only  the  sapiens  is  sane. 


121.  iactatur:    of   the  tossing 
about  of  a  fever-stricken  man. 

122.  libertus :  the  wretched  con- 
dition of  the  old  miser  is  increased 
by  the  suggestion  (more  fully  ex- 
pressed in  Sat.  i,  i,  80  ff.)  that  he 
has  alienated  his  natural  heirs.  — 
ebibat :  with  special  reference  to  the 
preceding    illustration,  vss.    115- 
117,  though  of  course  with  general 
application  to   in  ff.  and  117  ff. 
The  same  thought  was  afterward 
more     effectively     expressed     by 
Horace  in  Carm.  2,  14,  25  ff. 

123.  dis  inimice:  God-forsaken. 

124.  enim  :  not  for,  but  like 
the  English  use  of  now  or  why  to 
strengthen  an  argumentative  ques- 
tion. —  summae  :     dat. ;     for    the 
sense  cf.  vs.  84. —  quisque  dierum : 
i.e.  each  of  the  few  days  still  left 
to  a  man  of  your  age. 

126   f.   These  details  of   per- 


182 


SERMONES 


[2,  3.  132 


125    unguere  si  caules  oleo  meliore  caputque 

coeperis  impexa  foedum  porrigine  ?     Quare, 
si  quidvis  satis  est,  periuras,  surripis,  aufers 
undique  ?     Tun'  sanus  ?     Populum  si  caedere  saxis 
incipias  servosve  tuos  quos  acre  pararis, 

130     insanum  te  omnes  pueri  clamentque  puellae  : 
cum  laqueo  uxorem  interimis  matremque  veneno, 
incolumi  capite  es  ?     Quid  enim  ?     Neque  tu  hoc  facis 
Argis, 


sonal  untidiness  and  moral  obli- 
quity are  part  of  the  conventional 
picture  of  the  miser.  They  are 
used  occasionally  in  Sat.  i,  i  (e.g. 
vss.  96  ff.),  but  always  with  a  hu- 
morous recognition  of  their  extrav- 
agance ;  here  the  fanatical  Stoic 
attributes  the  sins  cf  the  individual 
(a  malefactor  of  great  wealth)  to 
the  whole  class,  as  if  he  were  us- 
ing a  serious  argument.  —  si  quid- 
vis  satis  est  :  i.e.  '  if  you  accept 
the  doctrine  of  philosophy  that 
enough  is  as  good  as  a  feast.'  Cf. 
Turpil.  144  R.,  ut  phllosophi  aiunt 
Isti  quibus  quidvis  sat  est,  and  Sat. 
J>  *»  S9>  Su*  tantuli  eget  quanta 
est  opus. 

128-141.  <You  in  your  senses? 
Most  certainly  not.  To  be  sure, 
the  common  judgment  is  that 
madness  shows  itself  in  violence, 
but  when  you  poison  your  mother, 
do  you  think  that  the  absence  of  vio- 
lence proves  you  sane  ?  What,  you 
think  it  does?  You  are  no  Orestes, 
you  say,  the  madman  who  went  to 
Argos  and  killed  his  mother  with 
a  sword,  for  you  did  the  deed 


without  bloodshed  and  not  in 
Argos  either.  But  it  is  the  crime, 
not  the  manner  or  the  place  of  it, 
that  proves  a  man  mad.  As  to 
Orestes,  his  madness  began  before 
his  violent  outbreak  and  in  fact, 
after  the  act  that  is  commonly 
considered  evidence  of  his  mad- 
ness, his  conduct  was  most  nor- 
mal and  exemplary —  except  a 
little  harmless  cursing.' 

129.  servos    tuos:    a  little  hit 
at  the  lover  of  money,  who  would 
be    quite   unlikely   to   injure    the 
money-value  of  his  own  slaves. 

130.  pueri  .  .  .  puellae :    pro- 
verbial, as  in  Sat.  i,  i,  85. 

131.  cum . . .  interimis :  i.e. '  wh  en 
you  are   engaged   in    some    quiet 
crime,  all  in  the  family.'    There  is, 
of  course,  no  implication  that  any 
such  crime  has  been  committed ; 
much  less,  as  is  generally  said,  that 
the  miser  had  murdered  his  mother 
for  her  money.     That  motive   is 
suggested  in  the  parallel  passage, 
Sat.  2,  i,  53  ff.,  but  not  here. 

132.  Argis:  locat.   from  Argi. 
The   point   is   to   show   that   the 


•z.  3.  '33] 


HORATI 


nec  ferro  ut  demens  genetricem  occidis  Orestes. 

An  tu  reris  eum  occisa  insanisse  parente, 
135     ac  non  ante  mails  dementem  actum  Furiis  quam 

in  matris  iugulo  ferrum  tepefecit  acutum  ? 

Quin,  ex  quo  est  habitus  male  tutae  mentis  Orestes, 

nil  sane  fecit  quod  tu  reprehendere  possis : 

non  Pyladen  ferro  violare  aususve  sororem 
140     Electram,  tantum  maledicit  utrique,  vocando 

hanc  Furiam,  hunc  aliud,  iussit  quod  splendida  bilis. 

Pauper  Opimius  argenti  positi  intus  et  auri, 

qui  Veientanum  festis  potare  diebus 

Campana  solitus  trulla  vappamque  profestis, 


manner  of  the  crime  is  wholly  un- 
essential, as  unessential  as  the 
place  where  it  was  committed. 

134.  occisa  insanisse  :  '  that  his 
madness     began     after    he    had 
killed  his  mother.' 

135.  dementem  actum :  driven 
mad. 

137.  Quin:  '•why,  on   the  con- 
trary.'1—  male  tutae:  non  tutae', 
one  of  the  synonyms  for  insanus. 

138.  sane:   strengthening  nil; 
he  certainly  did  nothing. 

139  ff.  Pyladen,  Electram :  the 
friend  and  the  sister  who  had 
helped  him  to  carry  out  his  pur- 
pose. The  passage  in  which  he 
calls  his  sister  a  Fury  is  in  Eurip- 
ides, Orest.  264,  but  there  is  no 
place  in  an  extant  play  in  which 
he  uses  hard  words  of  Pylades. 
The  whole  reference  in  140  f.  has 
nothing  to  do  with  the  argument; 
it  may  be  introduced  as  a  bit  of 
Stoic  precision  in  trifles  or  it  may 


be  mere  burlesque  of  a  tragic  sit- 
uation. —  splendida  bilis  :  bile 
was  considered  to  be  the  cause 
of  madness  and  splendida  is  ap- 
parently used  literally,  shining, 
from  the  descriptions  in  medical 
books.  —  It  is  entirely  in  the  man- 
ner of  Horace  to  drop  the  argu- 
ment here,  without  drawing  a 
conclusion,  and  to  go  on  without 
preface  to  a  new  illustration.  Cf., 
e.g.,  Sat.  i,  i,  67  f.  and  below, 
vss.  1 86  f. 

142.  Opimius :  coined  from  opi- 
mus,  as  Novius,  in  Sat.  I,  6,  40, 
from  novus,  and  contrasted  with 
patiper.  —  argenti :  gen.  with 
pauper. 

143  f.  Veientanum:  a  poor  wine, 
but  better  than  vappa,  mere  lees 
of  wine.  —  Campana  :  cheap  ware, 
which  Horace  himself  used  for 
ordinary  purposes  (Sat.  I,  6,  118), 
though  perhaps  not  for  drinking. 
—  trulla:  the  ladle,  so  that  he 


SERMONES  [2,  3,  158 

145    quondam  lethargo  grandi  est  oppressus,  ut  heres 
iam  circum  loculos  et  clavis  laetus  ovansque 
curreret.     Hunc  medicus  multum  celer  atque  fidelis 
excitat  hoc  pacto  :  mensam  poni  iubet  atque 
effundi  saccos  nummorum,  accedere  pluris 
150    ad  numerandum  ;  hominem  sic  erigit.     Addit  et  illud, 
'  Ni  tua  custodis,  avidus  iam  haec  auferet  heres.' 
'  Men'    vivo  ? '     '  Vt    vivas,  igitur,  vigila,    hoc    age.' 

'  Quid  vis  ? ' 

'  Deficient  inopem  venae  te,  ni  cibus  atque 
ingens  accedit  stomacho  fultura  ruenti. 
155    Tu  cessas  ?     Agedum,  sume  hoc  ptisanarium  oryzae.' 
'  Quanti  emptae  ? '    '  Parvo.'    *  Quanti,  ergo  ? '    '  Octus- 

sibus.'     'Eheu! 

quid  refert,  morbo  an  f urtis  pereamque  rapinis  ? ' 
Quisnam  igitur    sanus?     Qui   non    stultus.     Quid 
avarus  ? 

did  not  need  to  have  a  drinking-  154.   ingens :  immense,  with  in- 

cup.  tentional    exaggeration.  —  fultura 

147.  multum:   with   celer  and  ruenti \  fulcire  and  its  derivatives 
fidelis\  cf.  Sat.  I,  3,  57.  are  used  in  a  half-technical  sense 

148.  hoc  pacto :  i.e.  in  the  way  of  food  and   stimulants,  and  the 
which   is  described    in  the   next  figure  is  carried  on  in  ruenti. 
verses.  155.   Tu  cessas:  he  hesitated  at 

149  ff.   The  details  (pluris  to  the    thought    of   the  expense.  — 

make  a  little  confusion,  iam,  im-  ptisanarium  oryzae :   rice-gruel, 
mediately,  this  very  moment)  are  157.    furtis  .  .  .  rapinis :     i.e. 

added  to  show  the  directness  of  the  cost,  which  seemed  to  him  so 

the  appeal  to  the  tenderest  sensi-  great,    of    the    gruel    which    the 

bilities  of  Opimius.  doctor  was  trying  to  get  him  to 

152.   vigila:  both  in  the  literal  take.  —  With  this  exclamation  he 

sense  and  in  the  freer  meaning.  —  falls  back  in  despair, 
hoc  age :    a  general   form  of  ex-  158-160.   On   the   short    ques- 

hortation  to  pay  attention ;  attend  tions  and  answers  cf.  vs.  97  and 

to  business!  note.      They   are  all   spoken   by 

185 


2,  3.  '59] 


HORATI 


Stultus  et  insanus.     Quid,  si  quis  non  sit  avarus, 
160    continue  sanus  ?     Minime.     Cur,  Stoice  ?     Dicam. 
Non  est  cardiacus  (Craterum  dixisse  putato) 
hie  aeger.     Recte  est  igitur  surgetque  ?     Negabit, 
quod  latus  aut  renes  morbo  temptentur  acuto. 
Non  est  periurus  neque  sordidus :  immolet  aequis 
165'   hie  porcum  Laribus  ;  verum  ambitiosus  et  audax  : 
naviget  Anticyram.     Quid  enim  differt,  barathrone 
dones  quicquid  habes,  an  numquam  utare  paratis  ? 
Seryius  Oppidius  Canusi  duo  praedia,  dives 


Stertinius,  but  the  questions  ex- 
press the  supposed  attitude  of  a 
listener.  The  use  of  Stoice,  how- 
ever, with  its  suggestion  of  some 
slight  scorn  (cf.  vs.  300),  is  not 
dramatically  correct ;  cf.  crepat, 
vs.  33  and  note.  —  continue  :  i.e. 
'  may  we  at  once  conclude  that  he 
is  sane?' 

161  f.  cardiacus:  dyspeptic. — 
Craterum:  a  physician  of  the 
Ciceronian  time,  referred  to  in 
ad  Att.  12,  13,  i;  12,  14,  4,  as 
worthy  of  confidence.  —  Recte  est : 
sc.  ei,  but  translate  personally. 

163.  temptentur:  a  half-tech- 
nical word  of  illness.  The  subjv. 
is  used  to  imply  that  this  is  the 
reason  given  by  Craterus  for  his 
refusal  to  let  the  patient  get  up. 

164-167.  The  application  of  the 
story  and  the  transition  from  the 
folly  of  avarice  to  the  folly  of 
ambition.  —  periurus,  sordidus  : 
these  adjectives  go  back  in  par- 
ticular to  vss.  125  ff.,  but  with  a 
general  reference  to  the  avaricious 


man.  — immolet  .  .  .  porcum:  i.e. 
'let  him  thank  the  gods  for  his 
sanity  —  so  far.'  In  Plautus, 
Men.  289  ff.,  a  pig  is  to  be  of- 
fered to  the  gods  to  bring  about 
a  recovery  from  insanity ;  here  it 
is  in  gratitude  for  exemption  from 
insanity  ;  the  two  ideas  are  essen- 
tially the  same. — ambitiosus  et 
audax :  recklessly  ambitious.  — 
naviget :  '  he  may  as  well  engage 
passage  for  the  land  of  helle- 
bore ; '  i.e.  he  is  beyond  question 
a  mad-man.  —  barathro  dones :  the 
emphasis  through  vs.  186  is  upon 
the  heavy  expense  of  a  political 
career,  so  that  this  paragraph 
serves  as  a  transition  from  avarice, 
through  its  opposite,  to  ambition. 
—  numquam  utare  :  cf.  nescius  uti 
composttis,  vss.  109  f. 

1 68.  Canusi :  Canusium  was 
not  far  from  Venusia  and  this 
story  of  Servius  Oppidius  (oppi- 
dum  f)  belongs  in  the  same  class 
as  the  Ofellus  satire  (2,  2)  and 
the  story  told  by  Cervius  (Sat. 


1 86 


SERMONES 


3.  179 


antique  censu,  gnatis  divisse  duobus 
170    fertur,  et  hoc  moriens  pueris  dixisse  vocatis 
ad  lectum  :  'Postquam  te  talos,  Aule,  nucesque 
ferre  sinu  laxo,  donare  et  ludere  vidi, 
te,  Tiberi,  numerare,  cavis  abscondere  tristem, 
extimui  ne  vos  ageret  vesania  discors, 
175    tu  Nomentanum,  tu  ne  sequerere  Cicutam. 
Quare  per  divos  oratus  uterque  Penatis, 
tu  cave  ne  minuas,  tu  ne  mains  facias  id 
quod  satis  esse  putat  pater  et  natura  coercet. 
Praeterea  ne  vos  titillet  gloria,  iure 


2,  6,  77  ff.)-  They  are  bits  of  prac- 
tical philosophy  which  are  most 
appropriately  clothed  in  the  guise 
of  homely  tales  from  the  country. 
169  f .  antique  censu :  accord- 
ing to  old-fashioned  standards. 

—  pueris  :    they  were  still  young 
enough  for  boyish  games. 

171.  talos,  nuces :  for  games 
like  jack-stones  and  marbles.  So 
Augustus  (Suet.  Oct.  83)  :  animi 
laxandi  causa  .  .  .  tali's  aut  ocel- 
latis  mtcibusque  ludebat  cum  pueris 
1/12  nut  is. 

172  f.  sinu  laxo:  the  fold  of 
the  toga  served  as  a  pocket ;  in 
this  case  a  pocket  with  a  hole  in 
it.  —  donare :  with  careless  gener- 
osity. —  ludere :  i.e.  to  gamble 
and,  occasionally,  to  lose.  —  tris- 
tem :  with  anxious  look. 

174.   ageret:    cf.   agit,   vs.   44. 

—  vesania  discors :    two  different 
kinds  of  madness.     There   is   no 
suggestion  of  discord  between  the 
brothers. 


175.  Nomentanum:   Sat.  i,  i, 
1 02.  —  Cicutam :  above,  vs.  69. 

176.  oratus :      agreeing      with 
uterque,  but  the  words   must   be 
freely  rendered  ;  *  wherefore  I  be- 
seech you  both.' 

177.  minuas,  maius  facias :  the 
same  idea  of  frugal  contentment 
with    a     modest    patrimony    was 
urged  upon  Horace  by  his  father 
(Sat.   i,  4,   107  f.)  and,  he  says, 
became  his  rule  of  life    (Sat.   2, 
6,  7  f.). 

178.  natura  coercet :  i.e.  within 
the  limits  set  by  natural  desires ; 
cf.  Sat.    i,   i,  50.     Strictly,  quod 
is  the  obj.  of  coercet ;   '  the  patri- 
mony which  nature  limits.' 

179  ff.  The  warning  against 
political  ambition  is  apparently 
addressed  to  both  sons,  but  it 
has  little  meaning  in  its  applica- 
tion to  Tiberius  and,  indeed,  no 
connection  at  all  with  the  first 
part  of  the  story,  the  point  of 
which  is  the  vesania  discors^  the 


187 


2,3, 


HORATI 


i So    iurando  obstringam  ambo :  uter  aedilis  fueritve 
vestrum  praetor,  is  intestabilis  et  sacer  esto. 
In  cicere  atque  faba  bona  tu  perdasque  lupinis, 
latus  ut  in  Circo  spatiere  et  aeneus  ut  stes, 
nudus  agris,  nudus  nummis,  insane,  paternis  ? 

185    Scilicet  ut  plausus,  quos  fert  Agrippa,  feras  tu, 
astuta  ingenuum  volpes  imitata  leonem  ! ' 

'  Ne  quis  humasse  velit  Aiacem,  Atrida,  vetas  cur?' 
'  Rex  sum.'     '  Nil  ultra  quaero  plebeius.'     '  Et  aequam 


contrast    between     the    different 
dispositions  of  the  two  boys. 

181.  intestabilis:  'shall  forfeit 
his    legacy.'  —  sacer    esto :     the 
common    legal    formula    for  one 
who  violates  a  law ;  here  a  part 
of  the  oath  which  the  sons  were 
to  take. 

182.  cicere,  faba,  lupinis  :  gifts 
of  food  to  the  common  people  to 
win  favor  and  votes.     The  refer- 
ence  is  to  customs  in  Rome,  as 
the    other    local     and     personal 
allusions    show    (175,    183,    esp. 
185). 

183.  latus  .  .  .  spatiere :    such 
a  man  is  described  in  Epod.  4,  7  f. : 
Sacram  metiente    te    viam  \  cum 
bis  trium  ulnarum  toga.  — aeneus : 
i.e.    may   have    a  bronze    statue 
of   you  erected    in    some  public 
place. 

185  f.  Agrippa:  see  introd. 
to  this  satire.  Agrippa  was  one 
of  the  really  influential  men  of 
the  period.  —  The  next  line  can- 
not be  an  allusion  to  the  fable 
of  the  Ass  in  the  Lion's  Skin 
(Sat.  2,  i,  64  f.),  and  there  is 


apparently  no  fable  which  quite 
corresponds  to  this ;  it  may  very 
well  be  general,  'like  a  fox  who 
tries  to  act  a  lion's  part.' 

187-207.  A  scene  in  the  camp 
before  Troy.  Ajax,  having  been 
defeated  in  the  contest  for  the 
arms  of  Achilles  and  becoming 
insane  from  disappointment,  at- 
tacks the  flocks  of  sheep  und.er 
the  delusion  that  they  are  his 
rivals  and  finally  takes  his  own 
life.  Agamemnon  forbids  the 
burial  of  the  body  and  a  common 
soldier  comes  to  remonstrate. 
There  is  no  attempt  to  avoid 
anachronisms ;  on  the  contrary, 
the  humor  consists  largely  in  the 
introduction  into  a  Homeric  situa- 
tion of  modern  words,  like  ple- 
beius, consulere,  and  of  Stoic  forms 
of  sentence  and  methods  of  argu- 
ment. 

187.  Ne  quis  .  .  .  velit:  legal 
phraseology,  in  which  the  perf. 
infin.  is  often  used. 

188  f.  Et  aequam:  the  pre- 
tended humility  of  the  soldier 
obliges  the  king  to  add  a  further 


188 


SERMONES 


[2,  3,  201 


rem  imperito ;  ac  si  cui  videor  non  iustus,  inulto 
190    dicere  quod  sentit  permitto.'     '  Maxima  regum, 
di  tibi  dent  capta  classem  reducere  Troia  ! 
Ergo  consulere  et  mox  respondere  licebit  ? ' 
'  Consule.'     '  Cu  :  Aiax,  heros  ab  Achille  secundus, 
putescit,  totiens  servatis  clarus  Achivis  ? 
195    Gaudeat  ut  populus  Priami  Priamusque  inhumato, 
per  quern  tot  iuvenes  patrio  caruere  sepulchre  ? ' 
'  Mille  ovium  insanus  morti  dedit,  inclutum  Vlixen 
et  Menelaum  una  mecum  se  occidere  clamans.' 
'  Tu,  cum  pro  vitula  statuis  dulcem  Aulide  gnatam 
200    ante  aras,  spargisque  mola  caput,  improbe,  salsa, 

rectum  animi  servas  ? '     '  Quorsum  ? '     '  Insanus  quid 
enim  Aiax 


justification ;  '  and,  besides,  what 
I  am  ordering  is  just.'  The  rest 
of  the  sentence  is  a  still  more 
rapid  descent  from  rex  sum, — 
inulto :  with  impunity. 

191.  A  complimentary  wish,  to 
introduce  the  request  with  a  cour- 
teous formula ;  translated  from  the 
Iliad,  i,  18  f. 

192.  consulere :     the   technical 
term    for   consulting    a    jurist.  — 
mox  respondere :    the  jurist   then 
gave   his   formal    '  opinion '  upon 
the   case.      Strictly,   the   thought 
would   require   tibi  libebit  instead 
of  licebit  with  respondere. 

194.  putescit :  i.e.  lie  unburied. 

195.  Gaudeat :    from  the  Iliad, 
1,255. 

197.  Mille:  a  subst.  with  the 
gen.  This  construction  is  common 
in  early  Latin,  but  is  retained  in  the 


classical  period  only  rarely  in  the 
singular.  —  insanus  :  this  turns  the 
dialogue  in  the  desired  direction. 

199.  pro  vitula  :  the  important 
words  and  the  basis  of  the  argu- 
ment   that    follows  ;     '  of    course 
Ajax  was  mad  when  he  mistook 
a  sheep  for  a  man,   but   so   also 
were  you  when  you  mistook  your 
daughter  for  a  heifer.' 

200.  mola    .    .    .    salsa :       the 
sprinkling  of  salted  meal  on  the 
head  of  the  victim  was  a  part  of 
the  ordinary   ceremonial,  but   its 
mention  here  serves  to  make  the 
scene  more  vivid. 

201.  rectum  animi  servas :    an- 
other   periphrasis    for     the     fre- 
quently recurring  idea   of  sanity. 
—  Quorsum:    the  point?      Short 
for  quorsum  haec  tendunt?     Cf. 
Sat.  2,  7,  21. 


189 


2,  3.  202] 


HORATI 


fecit,  cum  stravit  ferro  pecus  ?     Abstinuit  vim 
uxore  et  gnato ;  mala  multa  precatus  Atridis, 
non  ille  aut  Teucrum  aut  ipsum  violavit  Vlixen.' 

205    '  Verum  ego,  ut  haerentis  adverse  litore  navis 
eriperem,  prudens  placavi  sanguine  divos.' 
'  Nempe  tuo,  furiose.'     '  Meo,  sed  non  furiosus.' 
Qui  species  alias  veris  scelerisque  tumultu 
permixtas  capiet,  commotus  habebitur,  atque 

210    stultitiane  erret  nihilum  distabit  an  ira. 
Aiax  immeritos  cum  occidit  desipit  agnos : 
cum  prudens  scelus  ob  titulos  admittis  inanis, 


203.  mala  .  .  .  precatus:     as 
the  violent  language  of  Orestes 
to   his  sister  and  his  friend  was 
not  inconsistent  with  sanity  (vss. 
140  f.). 

204.  ipsum :    Ulysses   was   his 
successful  rival  in  the  contest  for 
the  arms. 

205  f .  adverse  :  hostile,  '  on  a 
lee-shore.'  —  prudens  :  intention- 
ally, after  careful  deliberation,  not 
on  a  mad  impulse.  '  And  the 
act  was  a  pious  one ;  I  pacified 
the  gods.' 

207.  furiose :  a  much  stronger 
word  than  insanus.  —  At  this 
point  the  dialogue  ends  as  ab- 
ruptly as  it  had  begun  and  the 
following  lines  (208-213)  are  the 
comment  of  Stertinius. 

208  f .  The  terms  here  used  are 
colored  with  Stoic  meanings. 
Species  are  the  impressions  re- 
ceived through  the  senses  ;  if  they 
do  not  correspond  to  the  reality 
(alias  veris),  that  fact  is  evidence 


of  illusion,  as  in  vss.  53-58.  If 
they  are  still  further  distorted  by 
passion  (tumultu  permixtas),  the 
evidence  of  insanity  is  complete 
(commotus  habebitur) .  The  sense 
of  scelus  also  is  technical,  for  the 
Stoic  refused  to  distinguish  crime 
from  madness  (cf:  vss.  278  ff.)  ; 
sceleris  tumultu  is  hardly  more 
than  insano  tumultu. 

210.  stultitia:  the  fault  of  Aga- 
memnon, who  claimed  prudentia. 
—  ira :  the  cause  of  the  madness 
of  Ajax. 

212.  titulos :  the  inscriptions 
under  the  masks  in  the  atrium  of 
a  Roman  house.  They  recited 
the  public  offices  held  by  each 
person  represented  and  consti- 
tuted the  claim  of  the  owner  of 
the  house  to  nobility.  —  admittis : 
the  contrast  with  vs.  211  suggests 
that  this  is  addressed  to  Agamem- 
non, as  if  he  were  present,  but  it 
is  also  addressed  to  the  hearer, 
the  ambitious  man ;  *  when  you 


190 


SERMONES 


[2,  3.  225 


stas  animo,  et  purum  est  vitio  tibi,  cum  tumidum  est, 

cor? 
Si  quis  lectica  nitidam  gestare  amet  agnam, 

215    huic  vestem,  ut  gnatae,  paret,  ancillas  paret,  aurum, 
Rufam  aut  Pusillam  appellet,  fortique  marito 
destinet  uxorem,  interdicto  huic  omne  adimat  ius 
praetor,  et  ad  sanos  abeat  tutela  propinquos. 
Quid  ?  si  quis  gnatam  pro  muta  devovet  agna, 

220    integer  est  animi  ?     Ne  dixeris.     Ergo  ubi  prava 
stultitia,  hie  summa  est  insania  ;  qui  sceleratus, 
et  furiosus  erit ;  quem  cepit  vitrea  fama, 
hunc  circumtonuit  gaudens  Bellona  cruentis. 

Nunc  age,  luxuriam  et  Nomentanum  arripe  mecum  ; 

225    vincet  enim  stultos  ratio  insanire  nepotes. 


commit  such  a  crime  for  empty 
honors  .  .  .' 

213.  stas  animo :  the  same 
figure  as  that  in  commotus,  219. — 
tumidum :  absolute  ;  '  when  it  is  in 
the  tumult  of  passion.'  For  this 
contrast  with  philosophic  calm  see 
Cic.  Tusc.  3,9, 1 9,  where  in  tumor  e, 
tumidus,  and  lumens  are  all  used 
absolutely,  and  esp.  sapientis  autem 
animus  semper  vocat  vitio,  num- 
quam  turgescit,  numquam  tumet. 

214  ff.  gestare :  i.e.  to  have  it 
carried.  —  Rufam,  Pusillam :  or- 
dinary feminine  names,  taken  at 
random.  —  interdicto :  to  be  trans- 
lated as  a  verb  ; '  the  praetor  would 
lay  his  interdict  upon  him  and 
.  .  .'  This  was  a  regular  pro- 
ceeding under  Roman  law  and  this 
is  only  an  elaborate  way  of  saying 
that  he  would  be  adjudged  insane. 


221.  sceleratus:  cf.  sceleris  tu- 
multu,  vs.  208  ;  the  same  contrast 
as  that  between  stultitia  and  ira, 

VS.  2IO. 

222.  vitrea :  not  infrequent  in 
this  general  sense,  glittering,  daz- 
zling. —  fama  :  =  gloria,  \  79. 

223.  Bellona:  an  eastern  god- 
dess whose  rites  were  celebrated 
with  crazy  orgies  and  self-inflicted 
wounds  (gaudens  cruentis*). 

224-280.    The  third  head  of  the 
discourse,  the  folly  of  luxury. 

224.  Nomentanum:  cf.  vs.  175. 
—  arripe   mecum:  =  arripiamus, 
4  let    us    attack.'      The    verb    is 
suited  either  to  the  Stoic  preacher 
or  to  the  satirist,  2,  i,  69. 

225.  vincet  .  .  .  ratio :  cf.  vs. 
83  and  Sat.   I,  3,  115.  —  stultos: 
with  insanire ;  are  fools  and  mad- 
men. 


191 


2,  3,  226] 


HORATI 


Hie  simul  accepit  patrimoni  mille  talenta, 
cdicit,  piscator  uti,  pomarius,  auceps, 
unguentarius,  ac  Tusci  turba  impia  vici, 
cum  scurris  fartor,  cum  Velabro  omne  macellum, 

230  mane  domum  veniant.  Quid  turn  ?  Venere  frequentes. 
Verba  facit  leno  :  '  Quicquid  mihi,  quicquid  et  horum 
cuique  domi  est,  id  crede  tuum,  et  vel  ntfnc  pete  vel 

eras.' 

Accipe  quid  contra  iuvenis  respondent  aequus  : 
*  In  nive  Lucana  dormis  ocreatus,  ut  aprum 

235    cenem  ego  ;  tu  piscis  hiberno  ex  aequore  verris  ; 
segnis  ego,  indignus  qui  tantum  possideam :  aufer ! 


226-238.  A  picture  of  the  Rake's 
Progress,  not  inferior  in  its  irony 
and  its  real  moral  power  to  Ho- 
garth's engravings.  The  effec- 
tiveness of  it  lies  in  the  artifice  of 
representing  the  essentials  of  a 
spendthrift's  career  as  if  the  events 
had  actually  occurred  in  this  bare 
form.  For  Horace  does  not  mean 
that  such  a  gathering  as  this  took 
place  or  that  these  words  were 
uttered,  but  that  this  is  what  the 
whole  story  really  amounts  to,  if 
we  go  below  the  surface.  There 
is  a  grave  irony  in  the  lines  and 
the  burlesque  of  the  Stoic  manner 
is  dropped. 

227  ff.  edicit :  proclaims  by  his 
attitude  and  conduct.  Cf.  Sat.  2, 
2,  51  for  a  similar,  ironical  use 
of  this  formal  word.  —  piscator, 
pomarins,  .  .  .  :  purveyors  of  va- 
rious luxuries.  —  Tusci  .  .  .  vici :  a 
street  leading  from  the  Forum 
toward  the  river,  one  of  the  dis- 


reputable quarters  of  the  city. — 
scurris  :  a  scurra  was  a  hanger-on 
of  some  richer  man,  a  professional 
diner-out  who  lived  by  his  wits.  — 
fartor :  perhaps  the  sausage-maker. 
—  Velabro  :  a  street  opening  from 
the  Tuscus  viciis,  a  center  of  the 
trade  in  various  kinds  of  pro- 
visions. —  Quid  turn  :  what  next  f 
231.  leno:  the  procurer  is  the 
suitable  spokesman. 

233.  aequus:  fair-minded',  for 
their  valuable  services  he  proposes 
to  make  a  fair  return. 

234.  Lucana :  the  boars  of  Lu- 
cania  were  especially  esteemed  for 
food. — ocreatus:     greaves     were 
worn  to  protect  the  hunter  from 
the  tusks  of  the  boar.     These  de- 
tails of  hardship  and  danger  carry 
on  the  irony  of  aequus. 

335.    hiberno  :  cf.  Sat.  2,  2,  i6f. 

237.  deciens  :  sc.  centetia  milia 
sestertium,  a  million,  of  course  an 
absurd  sum. 


102 


SERMONES 


3.  247 


sume  tibi  deciens ;  tibi  tantundem ;  tibi  triplex, 
unde  uxor  media  currit  de  nocte  vocata.' 
Filius  Aesopi  detractam  ex  aure  Metellae, 

240    scilicet  ut  deciens  solidum  absorberet,  aceto 
diluit  insignem  bacam  :  qui  sanior  ac  si 
illud  idem  in  rapidum  flumen  iaceretve  cloacam  ? 
Quinti  progenies  Arri,  par  nobile  fratrum, 
nequitia  et  nugis  pravorum  et  amore  gemellum, 

245     luscinias  soliti  impenso  prandere  coemptas, 

quorsum  abeant  ?     Sanin'  creta,  an  carbone  notandi  ? 
Aedificare  casas,  plostello  adiungere  mures, 


238.  unde :  =  a  quo.  —  Notice 
again   the  abrupt  ending  of  one 
story  and  beginning  of  another. 

239.  Aesopi :    a    distinguished 
actor  of  Cicero's  time,  of  whose 
follies  some   reports   have   come 
down  to  us.     He  left  to  his  son, 
however,  a  large   fortune   and    a 
taste    for    extravagance.  —  Metel- 
lae:   probably   the   wife    of   Cor- 
nelius Lentulus  Spinther,  several 
times     referred     to     in    Cicero's 
letters. 

240.  solidum:    agreeing    with 
deciens  as  a  substantive  ;  '  a  whole 
million,'  somewhat  as  we  say  '  a 
lump   sum.'  — This   story   is   also 
connected  with  Antony  and  Cleo- 
patra.    But  pearls  do  not  dissolve 
in  wine  or  vinegar. 

243.  Arri:  cf.  vs.  86  and  note. 
—  par  nobile  fratrum :  often  quoted 
as  if  nobile  meant  noble  and  were 
used  here  ironically.  It  is  the  not 
infrequent  use  of  nobilis  in  pre- 
cisely the  sense  of  not  us,  with 

.      HOR.  SAT.  —  13  193 


either  a  good  or  a  bad  sense; 
here  notorious. 

244  f.  pravorum:  with  amore. 
—  gemellum:  agreeing  with  par, 
but  to  be  rendered  freely.  —  im- 
penso :  at  vast  expense.  Stories 
quite  incredible  have  come  down 
to  us  of  the  cost  of  a  single  night- 
ingale. 

246.  quorsum  abeant:  into 
which  class  shall  they  be  put  f  — 
creta,  carbone:  so  albus  et  ater, 
Epist.  2,  2,  189,  and  albus  an  ater 
homo,  Catull.  93,  2.  All  these  are 
merely  expressions  of  the  natural 
association  of  black  with  evil  and 
white  with  good.  For  complete- 
ness insani  would  be  used  with 
carbone,  but  it  is  unnecessary  to 
supply  it. 

247-280.  The  madness  of  lovers. 
This  subject  is  not  announced  in 
the  introduction  (vss.  77-81),  but 
may  be  considered  to  be  included 
under  the  third  heading,  the  pas- 
sion for  luxury. 


2. 3-  248] 


HORATI 


ludere  par  impar,  equitare  in  arundine  longa, 
si  quern  delectet  barbatum,  amentia  verset. 

250    Si  puerilius  his  ratio  esse  evincet  amare, 

nee  quicquam  differre  utrumne  in  pulvere,  trimus 
quale  prius,  ludas  opus,  an  meretricis  amore 
sollicitus  plores,  quaero,  faciasne  quod  olim 
mutatus  Polemon,  ponas  insignia  morbi, 

255    fasciolas,  cubital,  focalia,  potus  ut  ille 
dicitur  ex  collo  furtim  carpsisse  coronas, 
postquam  est  impransi  correptus  voce  magistri  ? 
Porrigis  irato  puero  cum  poma,  recusat : 
.  '  Sume,  catelle  ! '  negat ;  si  non  des,  optet :  amator 


247-249.  The  children's  games 
here  mentioned  are  still  in  vogue. 

—  barbatum:     i.e.  after    he    had 
come  to  manhood.  —  amentia  ver- 
set :  synonym  for  insanus  sit. 

250.  amare:  subj.  of  esse,  of 
which  puerilius  is  predicate. 

251  f.  in  pulvere:  in  f he  sand, 
with  a  suggestion  of  the  waste  of 
labor  which  is  again  expressed  in 
ludas  opus,  '  fool  away  your  labor.' 

—  prius :  agreeing  with  opus  to  be 
supplied  and  referring  back  to  vss. 
247  ff. 

254.  Polemon:  an  example  of 
the  reforming  power  of  philoso- 
phy, often  referred  to  by  Greek 
and  Latin  writers.  He  was  a 
young  clubman  in  Athens  who,  as 
he  was  returning  from  a  drinking- 
bout,  heard  the  voice  of  Xenocrates 
expounding  the  philosophy  of  the 
Academic  school.  He  entered  the 
room,  was  immediately  converted 
(mutatus)  by  the  doctrine,  and 


afterward  became  the  successor  of 
Xenocrates  as  head  of  the  school. 

255.  fasciolas:  bindings  about 
the  ankle,  a  kind  of  decorative 
garter. — cubital :  an  elbow-cushion, 
apparently  carried  about   for  use 
at  any  time.  —  focalia :  wrappings 
for  the  throat,  neckcloths.     These 
are   all   signs  of  that  effeminacy 
an  affectation  of  which  was  fash- 
ionable in  the  Augustan  period ; 
it  is  difficult  to  tell   in  regard  to 
Maecenas,  for  example,  how  far 
it  was  real  and  how  far  assumed. 

256.  furtim:    as   he  began  to 
realize  how  the  signs  of  dissipation 
looked  to  serious  people.  —  coro- 
nas :  he  was  still  wearing  flowers 
from  the  banquet. 

257.  impransi:  cf.  Sat.  2,  2,  7. 
259.   catelle :  a  humorous  term 

of  mingled  reproval  and  endear- 
ment, without  any  of  the  sugges- 
tions of  the  English  'puppy'  or 
'  whelp '  ;  little  scamp,  little  rogue. 


194 


SERMONES  [2,  3,  270 

260    exclusus  qui  distat,  agit  ubi  secum  eat  an  non, 
quo  rediturus  erat  non  arcessitus,  et  haeret 
invisis  foribus  ?     '  Nee  nunc,  cum  me  vocat  ultro, 
accedam,  an  potius  mediter  finire  dolores  ? 
Exclusit ;  revocrt:   redeam  ?   Non,  si  obsecret.'    Ecce 

265    servus,  non  paulo  sapientior  :  '  O  ere,  quae  res 

nee  modum  habet  neque  consilium,  ratione  modoque 
tractari  non  volt.     In  amore  haec  sunt  mala,  bellum, 
pax  rursum  :  haec  si  quis  tempestatis  prope  ritu 
mobilia  et  caeca  fluitantia  sorte  laboret 

270    reddere  certa  sibi,  nihilo  plus  explicet  ac  si 

260.   qui  distat:  cf.  quid  simile,  262  ff.  This  passage  is  a  trans- 

vs.  99 ;  qui  discrepat  istis,  vs.  108.  position  of  the  first  lines  of  Ter- 

The  endeavor  to  prove  all    men  ence's     Eunuchus     from     iambic 

equally  mad  leads  to  the  frequent  senarii  into  hexameters.    The  cor- 

use  of  this  kind  of  phrase.  —  agit :  responding  verses  of  the  Eunuchus 

considers,  argues.  (46  ff.)  are  as  follows :  — 

Phaedria,  the  lover,  speaks  :  — 

Quid  igitur  faciam?     ndn  earn  ne  mine  quidem 
quam  accessor  ultro?     an  p6tius  ita  me  cdmparem, 
non  perpeti  meretn'cum  contume"lias? 
exclusit;  revocat:  re"deam?    non,  si  me  6bsecret. 

Parmeno,  the  slave,  replies  (vss.  57  ff.) :  — 

ere,  quad,  res  in  se  ne*que  consilium  ndque  modum 

habet  ullum,  earn  consilio  regere  n6n  potes. 

in  am6re  haec  omnia  insunt   vitia :    iniiiriae, 

suspiciones,  fnimicitiae,  indutiae, 

bellum,  pax  rursum  ;    ince"rta  haec  si  tu  pdstules 

rati6ne  certa  facere,  nihilo  plus  agas 

quam  si  des  operam  ut  aim  ratione  insanias. 

265.  sapientior:  the  confiden-  changeable  as  the  -weather.  In 
tial  slave  in  the  comedies  is  usually  this  use  ritu  is  no  more  than  inodo. 
in  the  position  of  advisor  to  his  —  caeca  .  .  .  sorte :  the  direct  op- 
young  master.  posite  of  certa  ratione. 

267.  non  volt :  i.e.  cannot,  does  270.  explicet :  untangle, 

not  submit  to  such  treatment.  straighten  out,  i.e.  reduce  the 

268  f .  tempestatis    .  .   .    ritu :  matter  to   system  and   certainty. 

195 


z.  3.  271 J 


HORATI 


insanire  paret  certa  ratione  modoque.' 
Quid  ?  cum,  Picenis  excerpens  semina  pomis, 
gaudes  si  cameram  percusti  forte,  penes  te  es  ? 
Quid  ?  cum  balba  feris  annoso  verba  palato, 

275     aedificante  casas  qui  sanior?     Adde  cruorem 

stultitiae,  atque  ignem  gladio  scrutare.    Modo,  inquam, 
Hellade  percussa  Marius  cum  praecipitat  se, 
cerritus  fuit  ?     An  commotae  crimine  mentis 
absolves  hominem,  et  sceleris  damnabis  eundem, 

280    ex  more  imponens  cognata  vocabula  rebus  ? 


272  f.  Picenis  :  specified  merely 
for  vividness.  Picenum  was  a  re- 
gion of  good  orchards.  —  The 
moist  appleseeds  were  pinched 
out  between  the  thumb  and  the 
forefinger ;  if  one  could  be  made 
to  strike  the  ceiling  (cameram),  it 
was  an  omen  of  success  in  love. 

274  f.  feris  :  the  words  of  love 
are  stammering  because  the  organs 
of  speech  (palato)  are  those  of 
an  old  man  and  the  sounds  stum- 
.  ble  over  them.  For  the  rather 
forced  feris  Persius,  imitating  this 
passage  (in  I,  35),  uses  tenero 
snpplantat  ('  trips  up ')  verba  pa- 
lato.—  aedificante:  this  refers 
back  to  vs.  247. 

275.  cruorem:  i.e.  the  violent 
crimes  into  which  men  are  led  by 
love. 

276  f .  ignem  .  .  .  scrutare :  a 
reference  to  the  Pythagorean  say- 
ing 7n)p  /xa^tttpa  fj.r)  (TKaAeuciv,  but 
with  a  different  sense,  like  oleum 
adde  camino,  vs.  321.  —  Modo: 
just  lately ;  the  murder  and  suicide 


had  occurred  just  before  this  and 
had  been  much  talked  about,  so 
that  a  bare  allusion  is  enough. 
For  the  same  reason  praecipitat 
is  used  alone  without  in  Tiberitn 
or  fie  ritpe.  The  persons  men- 
tioned are  unknown  to  us. 

278.  cerritus:  mad]  an  old 
word  of  uncertain  origin,  used 
several  times  in  Plautus. 

278-280.  <  Or  will  you  acquit 
him  of  insanity  and  in  the  same 
breath  call  him  a  murderer,  giving, 
as  people  do,  different  names  to 
things  which  are  really  identical  ? ' 
The  interpretation  is  not  quite 
easy,  the  difficulty  being  in  cognata, 
related,  kindred.  The  general 
sense  is  clear.  The  Stoic  doctrine 
was  that  crime  and  madness  were 
the  same  thing  —  qui  sceleratus,  et 
furiosus  erit,  221  f.  —  and  should 
be  called  by  the  same  name ;  but 
the  common  way  was  to  give  them 
different  names  (insania,  see/us) 
•which  are  nevertheless  alike 
in  meaning. 


196 


SERMONES 


[2,  3.  291 


Libertinus  erat,  qui  circum  compita  siccus 
lautis  mane  senex  manibus  currebat  et  '  Vnum  ' 
('  quid  tarn  magnum  ? '  addens),    '  unum    me   surpite 

morti, 
dis  etenim  facile  est ! '  orabat ;  sanus  utrisque 

285    auribus  atque  oculis  ;  mentem,  nisi  litigiosus, 

exciperet  dominus  cum  venderet.     Hoc  quoque  volgus 
Chrysippus  ponit  fecunda  in  gente  Meneni. 
'  luppiter,  ingentis  qui  das  adimisque  dolores,' 
mater  ait  pueri  mensis  iam  quinque  cubantis, 

290    '  f rigida  si  puerum  quartana  reliquerit,  illo 
mane  die,  quo  tu  indicis  ieiunia,  nudus 


281-295.  Fourth  head,  the  folly 
of  superstition.  This  is  a  subject 
in  which  Horace  felt  little  interest ; 
he  scarcely  touches  it  elsewhere  in 
the  satires,  and  the  brief  treatment 
of  it  here  is  rather  lifeless. 

281  f.  The  details  are  not  insig- 
nificant. The  man  was  old,  so  that 
death  was  not  far  away ;  he  was  a 
freedman,  probably  a  foreigner, 
and  therefore  more  inclined  to 
superstition;  he  observed  the  for- 
eign (perhaps  Jewish)  customs  of 
fasting  (siccus)  and  of  ceremonial 
washings  (lautis  manibus)  and 
one  shrine  was  to  him  as  good  as 
another  (circum  compita). 

282  f .  Vnum :  not  me  only, 
in  preference  to  others,  but  'ex- 
ercise your  power  just  once  —  such 
a  little  thing  to  do.1  —  surpite: 
surripite ;  the  shortened  forms  are 
colloquial. 

286  f .  exciperet :  '  would  have 
made  a  distinct  exception'  in 


giving  a  guaranty  of  soundness. 
The  tense  refers  back  to  the  time 
when  he  was  still  a  slave.  —  hoc 
.  .  .  volgus :  the  superstitious,  as 
exemplified  in  the  case  just  de- 
scribed, with  the  implication  that 
there  are  many  of  them.  —  fecunda 
.  .  .  Meneni :  the  general  sense  is 
plain,  that  the  superstitious  are  to 
be  reckoned  among  the  insane, 
but  no  contemporary  Menenius  is 
known,  to  whom  the  allusion  would 
apply. 

288  ff.  As  so  frequently,  the 
next  illustration  begins  abruptly, 
without  explanation. 

289.  cubantis:  lying  ill;  cf. 
Sat.  1,9,  1 8. 

290  f.  quartana :  one  of  the 
forms  of  recurrent  malaria,  quartan 
chills.  —  illo  .  .  .  die :  there  was  no 
Roman  week,  but  there  are  traces 
of  the  eastern  week  here  and  there 
in  Latin  literature.  Tibullus  (i, 
3,  1 8)  refers  to  Saturni  dies  (Sat- 
197 


2,  3.  292] 


HORATI 


in  Tiber!  stabit.'     Casus  medicusve  levarit 
aegrum  ex  praecipiti :  mater  delira  necabit 
in  gelida  fixum  ripa  febrimque  reducet, 

295    quone  malo  mentem  concussa  ?     Timore  deorum.' 
Haec  mihi  Stertinius,  sapientum  octavus,  amico 
arma  dedit,  posthac  ne  compellarer  inultus. 
Dixerit  insanum  qui  me,  totidem  audiet,  atque 
respicere  ignoto  discet  pendentia  tergo. 

300        Hor.  Stoice,  post  damnum  sic  vendas  omnia  pluris, 
qua  me  stultitia,  quoniam  non  est  genus  unum, 


urday)  and  the  dies  lovis  was 
Thursday,  i.e.  Thor's  day.  On 
this  day  the  stricter  sects  of  the 
Jews  fasted  (ieiunid)  and  ceremo- 
nial bathing  in  the  early  morning 
(niane)  was  an  Oriental  observ- 
ance. All  this  indicates  that  this 
instance,  like  the  preceding,  was 
regarded  by  Horace  as  foreign. 
Our  native  superstitions  do  not 
attract  our  notice. 

292.  Casus  medicusve  :  not  the 
god. 

293  f .  ex  praecipiti :  from  the 
crisis  of  the  illness. — necabit .  .  . 
febrimque  reducet:  i.e.  'will  kill 
him  by  bringing  back  the  fever.'  — 
fixum:  cf.  stabit]  the  child  is  to 
stand  still,  perhaps  during  prayer. 

295.  quone :  cf.  uterne,  Sat.  2, 
2,  107.  —  Timore  deorum:  the 
Greek  SewriSat/xovia,  quite  different 
from  the  Roman  pietas  or  from 
that  '  fear  of  God '  which  is  the 
beginning  of  wisdom. 

296-299.  An  epilogue,  spoken 
by  Damasippus  in  his  own  person 


and  corresponding  to  the  intro- 
duction by  Stertinius,  vss.  77-81. 
—  octavus:  as  Sappho  was  some- 
times called  the  Tenth  Muse.  — 
amico :  spoken  with  pride  that 
the  great  man  calls  him  a  friend.  — 
inultus :  amplified  in  the  next  two 
lines.  —  totidem  :  i.e.  shall  be 
called  a  madman  himself.  —  pen- 
dentia :  with  reference  to  the  fable 
of  the  two  sacks ;  the  one  in  front 
contains  the  faults  of  other  people, 
but  each  man  puts  his  own  faults 
into  the  sack  that  hangs  behind 
him,  where  he  will  not  see  them. 

300-326.  The  concluding  con- 
versation. Horace  rouses  him- 
self after  the  long  sermon  and 
inquires  with  no  expectation  of  a 
reply,  whether  it  applies  to  him. 
Damasippus,  with  Stoic  directness, 
points  out  various  applications. 

300.  sic  vendas :  the  introduc- 
tory wish;  cf.  vs.  16  note,  vs.  191. 
— pluris :  at  a  profit,  so  that  he 
may,  if  he  chooses,  resume  his  life 
as  a  business  man. 


108 


SERMONES 


[2, 


insanire  putas  ?     Ego  nam  videor  mihi  sanus. 

Dam.  Quid?   caput  abscissum    manibus  cum    portat 

Agaue 
gnati  infelicis,  sibi  turn  f uriosa  videtur  ? 

305    Hor.  Stultum  me  fateor  (liceat  concedere  veris), 
atque  etiam  insanum  ;  tantum  hoc  edissere,  quo  me 
aegrotare  putes  animi  vitio  ?     Dam.     Accipe :  primum 
aedificas,  hoc  est,  longos  imitaris,  ab  imo 
ad  summum  totus  moduli  bipedalis  ;  et  idem 

310    corpore  maiorem  rides  Turbonis  in  armis 


302.  videor  mihi  sanus :  i.e. 
under  the  cover  of  asking  for  his 
particular  form  of  insanity  Horace 
is  really  implying  that  he  is  not 
insane  at  all.  Damasippus  goes 
straight  to  the  point. 

303  f .  The  story  is  told  in  the 
Bacchae  of  Euripides,  where  Agave, 
the  mother  of  Pentheus,  appears, 
carrying  the  head  of  her  son,  whom 
she  and  the  other  Bacchantes  have 
torn  to  pieces,  mistaking  him  in 
their  frenzy  for  an  animal.  The 
argument  is  that,  as  no  madman 
recognizes  his  condition,  such  a 
statement  as  irideor  mihi  sanus 
proves  nothing. 

305  f.  Horace  represents  himself 
as  yielding  to  the  Stoic's  argument, 
as  indeed  he  must,  but  he  does  it 
grudgingly,  at  first  admitting  only 
the  milder  stultus  and  then  at 
last  making  full  submission  in 
atque  etiam  insanum.  —  liceat : 
let  me  yield  to  facts,  i.e.  'permit 
me  to  yield  as  gracefully  as  I  can.5 

306.  edissere :   a  rather  formal 


word,  Tell  me  fully.  The  question 
quo  .  .  .  -vitio?  repeats  qua  tie 
stultitia  .  .  .  putas?  in  different 
words  and  with  much  less  confi- 
dence that  the  Stoic  will  find  it 
a  difficult  question  to  answer. 

307  ff .  primum :  as  if  there  was 
to  be  a  series  of  charges. — aedifi- 
cas :  this  must  be  a  reference  to 
some  building  operations  on  Hor- 
ace's farm.  See  introd.  to  this 
satire.  —  longos:  big  people,  i.e. 
the  rich ;  but  the  word  is  selected 
for  its  double  meaning.  The  Vita 
of  Suetonius  says  '  Horatius  .  .  . 
habitu  corporis  fuit  brevis  atque 
obesus'  and  he  speaks  of  himself 
as  corporis exigui  (^Epist.  1, 20, 24) . 
—  bipedalis  :  of  course  ironical, 
as  if  he  had  said '  you  who  are  little 
better  than  a  dwarf  in  comparison 
with  really  big  people  like  Mae- 
cenas.'—  idem :  with  restrictive  or 
adversative  force,  as  often ;  cf.  vs. 
279.  Translate,  in  spite  of  that  or 
and  yet  you.  —  Turbonis  :  a  gladi- 
ator of  small  size,  but  great  spirit. 


199 


2.3.3H] 


HORATI 


spiritum  et  incessum  :  qui  ridiculus  minus  illo  ? 

An  quodcumque  facit  Maecenas,  te  quoque  verum  est, 

tantum  dissimilem,  et  tanto  certare  minorem  ? 

Absentis  ranae  pullis  vituli  pede  pressis, 
315    unus  ubi  effugit,  matri  denarrat,  ut  ingens 

belua  cognates  eliserit.     Ilia  rogare  : 

'  Quantane,  num  tantum,'  sufflans  se,  '  magna  f  uisset  ? ' 

'  Maior  dimidio.'     '  Num  tantum  ? '     Cum  magis  atque 

se  magis  inflaret,  '  Non,  si  te  ruperis,'  inquit, 
320     '  par  eris.'     Haec  a  te  non  multum  abludit  imago. 

Adde  poemata  nunc,  hoc  est,  oleum  adde  camino ; 

quae  si  quis  sanus  fecit,  sanus  facis  et  tu. 

Non    dico    horrendam    rabiem  —  Hor.    lam    desine ! 
Dam.   Cultum 

maiorem  censu  —  Hor.     Teneas,  Damasippe,  tuis  te. 


312.  Maecenas  had  laid  out 
gardens  and  built  a  splendid  palace 
on  the  Esquiline,  to  which  Horace 
refers  in  Sat.  I,  8,  7  as  if  it  were 
not  yet  completed.  In  Epod.  9,  3 
and  Carm.  3,  29,  10,  Maecenas 
was  living  in  it.  Other  passages 
(Sat.  2,  6,  31 ;  2,  7,  32  rF.)  show 
that  Horace  was  not  unwilling  to 
joke  about  his  relation  to  his  great 
friend.  — verum :  proper,  suitable. 

314  ff.  The  Fable  of  the  Ox  and 
the  Frogs.  Horace  took  the  story 
from  some  Greek  source,  different 
from  that  of  Phaedrus  (i,  24). 

317.  Quantane :  cf.  quone,  vs. 
295. 

320  ff.  non  multum  abludit : 
kits  pretty  near.  —  poemata  :  the 
epodes  and  lyrics  which  Horace 
was  beginning  to  v/rite ;  cf.  vss. 


1 1  ff.  There  is  a  similar  reference 
to  the  divine  inspiration  of  poets 
in  Sat.  2,  7,  117,  aut  insanit  homo 
aut  versus  facit.  —  si  quis  .  .  . 
et  tu :  i.e.  you  can  no  more  be  free 
from  the  insanity  of  the  poet  than 
others  have  been. 

323.  rabiem :  cf.  Epist.  I,  20, 
25,  irasci  celerem,  tamen  ut  placa- 
bilis  essem ;  but  cf.  also  Sat.  i,  9, 
ii  f.,  where  he  wishes  he  had  a 
temper.  The  expression  here  is 
a  humorous  exaggeration.  —  lam 
desine  :  it  is,  of  course,  a  very  neat 
touch  to  represent  himself  as  made 
angry  by  the  charge  of  having  a 
hot  temper.  For  the  outbreak  cf. 
Sat.  2,7,  116  ff. 

323  f .  Cultum :  way  of  living. 
—  censu:  here  no  more  than  in- 
come, not  as  in  Sat.  2,  i,  75. 


200 


SERMONES  [2,  3,  326 

325     Dam.  Mille  puellarum,  puerorum  mille  furores  — 
Hor.  O  maior  tandem  parcas,  insane,  minor! ! 

326.   This  turns  the   teaching  of  Damasippus    (vss.  298  f.)    back 
upon  himself. 


The  date  of  this  satire  cannot  be  fixed,  but  its  character  is  such  that 
the  precise  date  is  of  no  importance.  It  was  probably  written  after 
Sat.  2,  2. 

In  form  it  is,  like  the  preceding  satire,  a  main  body  of  discourse 
enclosed  in  a  framework  of  dialogue.  Horace  meets  upon  the  street 
an  acquaintance  who  is  hurrying  home  to  commit  to  writing  certain 
precepts  of  gastronomy  which  he  had  just  heard.  At  Horace's  request 
he  consents  to  repeat  them  and  after  he  has  done  so,  in  the  main  body 
of  the  satire  (vss.  12-87),  Horace,  deeply  impressed,  begs  that  he  may 
himself  be  allowed  to  attend  the  next  lecture  on  the  important  subject 
and  hear  with  his  own  ears.  The  introductory  dialogue  and  the  con- 
cluding request  are  less  dramatic  than  the  corresponding  parts  of  the 
preceding  satire,  but  they  contrast  in  a  somewhat  similar  way  the 
enthusiasm  of  the  believer  with  the  attitude  of  Horace  and  they  are 
admirable  specimens  of  ironical  deference. 

The  main  discourse  consists  of  a  series  of  precepts  for  the  selection 
and  serving  of  the  courses  of  a  dinner.  They  follow  in  general  the 
order  of  the  Roman  dinner,  the  gustatio,  the  main  course,  wines  and 
sauces,  and  the  dessert,  with  advice  about  the  service  of  the  table. 
Each  precept  is  given  separately,  as  if  it  were  an  oracle  which  needs  no 
explanation  or  logical  connection.  The  style  is  serious  and  almost 
epic,  as  befits  the  seriousness  of  the  speaker,  but  there  is  no  such 
parody  of  the  manner  of  the  philosopher  as  in  Satires  2  and  3.  The 
irony  which  is  easily  felt  in  the  dialogti"  is  here  less  apparent,  especially 
to  the  modern  reader,  to  whom  many  of  the  details  of  Roman  cookery 
must  remain  unknown.  The  reader  of  Horace's  time,  however,  would 
feel  at  once  the  absurdity  of  the  precepts,  both  in  general  and  in  details, 
and  would  therefore  be  conscious  of  the  humor  of  lines  which  to  the 
modern  reader  are  rather  dull. 

The  speaker  is  called  Catius  and  he  is  represented  (vs.  11)  as  quoting 
from  the  discourse  of  an  authority  on  gastronomy  whose  name  he  avoids 
giving. '  This  is,  in  form,  the  same  device  that  is  used  in  Sat.  2,  3,  where 
Damasippus  quotes  from  Stertinius,  and  in  Sat.  2,  7,  in  which  the  slave 

201 


2,  4,  I]  HORATI 

repeats  the  teachings  which  he  had  learned  from  the  door-keeper  of 
Crispinus  (vs.  45).  Such  machinery  of  the  satirical  form  is  not  to  be 
taken  seriously ;  in  Sat.  2,  7  it  is  plainly  a  mere  joke  and  the  Damasip- 
pus-Stertinius  relation  in  Sat.  2,  3  serves  only  to  give  a  background  for 
the  parody  of  Stoic  preaching.  Of  the  various  identifications  of  Catius 
the  only  one  which  has  both  plausibility  and  point  is  the  one  proposed 
by  Manso  and  revived  by  Palmer,  that  the  name  is  a  disguise  of  Matius, 
the  friend  of  Cicero,  Caesar,  Trebatius  an5  Augustus.  But,  in  fact,  the 
precise  identification  of  either  Catius  or  the  mysterious  auctor  is  of  no 
more  importance  than  the  precise  determination  of  the  date  of  composi- 
tion. The  satire  contains  in  itself  its  own  best  commentary.  It  is  a 
bit  of  humorous  and  not  unfriendly  irony,  directed  primarily  against 
some  person  whose  name  is  ostentatiously  withheld  and,  more  broadly, 
against  the  science  and  art  of  gastronomy.  So  far  as  there  is  any  per- 
sonality in  it,  it  is  of  a  kind  which  would  be  especially  understood  and 
appreciated  by  Horace's  intimate  friends,  and  the  satire  belongs,  in  this 
respect,  to  the  same  class  as  Sat.  I,  9  and  Sat.  2,  8.  In  all  three  there 
is  the  note  of  intimacy  and  it  is  not  at  all  impossible  that  the  learning 
of  this  satire  is  a  parody  of  gastronomic  conversations  which  Horace 
had  heard  at  the  table  of  Maecenas. 

Hor.  Vnde  et  quo  Catius  ?     Cat.  Non  est  mihi  tempus 

aventi 

ponere  signa  novis  praeceptis,  qualia  vincant 
Pythagoran  Anytique  reum  doctumque  Platona. 
Hor.  Peccatum  fateor,  cum  te  sic  tempore  laevo 
5       interpellarim  ;  sed  des  veniam  bonus,  oro. 

Quod  si  interciderit  tibi  nunc  aliquid,  repetes  mox, 
sive  est  naturae  hoc  sive  artis,  mirus  utroque. 

1.  Vnde  etquo:  two  questions  3.   Anyti  reum:    Socrates.     In 
condensed  into  one ;  cf.  Sat.  i,  9,  his   trial   Anytus   was    the    chief 
62.  accuser. 

2.  ponere  signa :   to  set  down  7.  naturae,  artis :   the   distinc- 
or  fix  upon  his  mind,  as  he  went  tion  between  natural  and  artificial 
along,  the  mnemonic  signs  which  memory,  by  the  aid  of  mnemonic 
would  assist  him  in  recalling  the  signs  (imagines,  signa),  was  tradi- 
whole  discourse  and  putting  it  into  tional  in  rhetoric,  and  is  briefly  dis- 
writing.  cussed  in  ad  Her ~en.  3, 16-17,28-30. 

202 


SERMONES  [2,  4,  23 

Cat.  Quin  id  erat  curae,  quo  pacto  cuncta  tenerem, 
utpote  res  tenuis,  tenui  sermone  peractas. 

10      Hor.  Ede    hominis    nomen,    simul    et    Romanus    an 

hospes. 
Cat.  Ipsa  memor  praecepta  canam,  celabitur  auctor. 

Longa  quibus  facies  ovis  erit,  ilia  memento, 
ut  suci  melioris  et  ut  magis  alba  rotundis, 
ponere  ;  namque  marem  cohibent  callosa  vitellum. 

15      Cole  suburbano  qui  siccis  crevit  in  agris 
dulcior  ;  irriguo  nihil  est  elutius  horto. 
Si  vespertinus  subito  te  oppresserit  hospes, 
ne  gallina  malum  responset  dura  palato, 
doctus  eris  vivam  mixto  mersare  Falerno  ; 

20      hoc  teneram  faciet.     Pratensibus  optima  fungis 
natura  est ;  aliis  male  creditur.     Ille  salubris 
aestates  peraget,  qui  nigris  prandia  moris 
finiet,  ante  gravem  quae  legerit  arbore  solem. 

8.   id:  with  a  reference  back  to  18.   malum  responset :  defy,  re- 

vs.  6;   the  idea  is  then  amplified  sist,  as  in  Sal.  2,  7,  85,   103. — 

in  quo  .  .  .  tenerem.  dura:  tough,  because  the  fowl  was 

10-11.  These   lines   suggest  a  killed  after  the  unexpected  guest 

joking   reference   to  some  friend,  had  appeared, 
whose  name  would  be  known  to  19.    doctus :      '  you    will    show 

the    inner    circle    of    readers. —  yourself   learned    in    the    art    of 

canam :  with  a  certain  formality.  cookery  by  smothering  it.' 

12.    facies :  shape.  20.  Pratensibus   .    .    .    fungis : 

14.    callosa :    compact,  solid.  —  '  mushrooms    that    grow    in    the 

vitellum:  chick;  this  is  merely  an  meadows.' 

elaborate  way  of  saying  that  male  22.    moris :    mulberries.      This 

fowls  are  hatched  from  long  eggs.  advice  about  lunch  and  the  pre- 

15-16.  Cole:    cabbage.  —  subur-  ceding  lines  on  the  preparation  of 

bano :    in  a  garden  near  the  city  a  fowl  for  supper  show  that  there 

water  for  irrigation  would  be  more  is  no  intention  of  following  pre- 

abundant.  —  elutius :      more    in-  cisely  the  order  of  the  courses  of 

sipid ;    literally,  washed  out.  a  dinner. 

203 


2,  4>  24]  HORATI 

Aufidius  forti  miscebat  mella  Falerno, 
25      mendose,  quoniain  vacuis  committere  venis 
nil  nisi  lene  decet ;  leni  praecordia  mulso 
prolueris  melius.     Si  dura  morabitur  alvus, 
mitulus  et  viles  pellent  obstantia  conchae 
et  lapathi  brevis  herba,  sed  albo  non  sine  Coo. 
30      Lubrica  nascentes  implent  conchylia  lunae ; 

sed  non  omne  mare  est  generosae  fertile  testae; 
murice  Baiano  melior  Lucrina  peloris, 
ostrea  Circeiis,  Miseno  oriuntur  echini, 
pectinibus  patulis  iactat  se  molle  Tarentum. 
35  Nee  sibi  cenarum  quivis  temere  arroget  artem, 

non  prius  exacta  tenui  ratione  saporum ; 
nee  satis  est  cara  piscis  averrere  mensa 
ignarum  quibus  est  ius  aptius  et  quibus  assis 
languidus  in  cubitum  iam  se  conviva  reponet. 

24-26.  Aufidius :  unknown.   He  of  the  line  is  that  they  should  be 

is  quoted  with  formality  as  a  rival  gathered   when    the  moon   is   in- 

authority,  to  be  refuted  in  the  sin-  creasing,  during  the  first  half  of 

gle  word  mendose.     The  mulsum,  the  lunar  month. 
a   mixture    of    wine    and    honey,  32-34.    murice :    cockle.  —  pelo- 

was  drunk   at    the    beginning  of  ris :  giant  mussel.  —  echini:    sea- 

the  meal.     The  error  of  Aufidius  urchins,  —  pectinibus  :       scallops. 

was  in  using  a  strong  wine,  forti  These  lines  give  the  proper  places 

Falerno ;    the    emphasis    of    the  for  getting  the   best  shell-fish  of 

correction  is  upon  lene,  leni.  each  kind,  like  Little  Neck  clams, 

27-29.    Si  ...  alvus :    i.e.  for  Blue  Point  oysters, 
constipation.  —  mitulus :     mussel.  36.   non   prius :     i.e.    '  until  he 

—  conchae:    a   general    term    for  shall  have  learned  thoroughly.'  — 

shell-fish.  —  lapathi:       sorrel. —  tenui:  fine*  subtle,  as  in  vs.  9. 
brevis  :    small-leaved,   or  perhaps  37.   averrere  :  to  sweep  up  from 

low-growing.  —  Coo :       a     Greek  the  table  of  the  fish-dealer,   but 

wine.  with  a  reference  also  to  the  use  of 

30.    conchylia  :  another  general  nets  in  catching  the  fish, 
term  for  shell-fish.     The  meaning  38  f.    assis :    broiled.  —  langui- 

204 


SERMONES  [2,  4,  55 

40     Vmber  et  iligna  nutritus  glande  rotundas 

curvat  aper  lances  carnem  vitantis  inertem  ; 

nam  Laurens  malus  est,  ulvis  et  arundine  pinguis. 

Vinea  submittit  capreas  non  semper  edulis. 

Fecundae  leporis  sapiens  sectabitur  armos. 
45      Piscibus  atque  avibus  quae  natura  et  f.oret  aetas, 

ante  meum  nulli  patuit  quaesita  palatum. 

Sunt  quorum  ingenium  nova  tantum  crustula  promit. 

Nequaquam  satis  in  re  una  consumere  curam, 

ut  si  quis  solum  hoc,  mala  ne  sint  vina,  laborer., 
50      quali  perfundat  piscis  securus  olivo. 

Massica  si  caelo  supponas  vina  sereno, 

nocturna,  si  quid  crassi  est,  tenuabitur  aura, 

et  decedet  odor  nervis  inimicus ;  at  ilia 

integrum  perdunt  lino  vitiata  saporem. 
55      Surrentina  vafer  qui  miscet  faece  Falerna 

dus :  i.e.  even  a  sated    guest  will  to   originality  in  vs.   73  and   the 

raise  himself  again  on  his  elbow  similar  claim  in  Sat.  2,  8,  51. 

at  the  sight  of  the  appetizing  dish.  47.    promit:  produces,  i.e.   in- 

40-42.     iligna  glanrte:     acorns,  vents.     The   line  seems  to   be  a 

—  curvat:     bends',     the    platters  veiled  reference  to  some  particular 

were  of  silver.  —  vitantis  inertem :  person. 

the   important    words;    'the    epi-  50.    securus:    careless,  govern- 

cure,  the  man  who  avoids  tasteless  ing  the  clause  quali  .  .  .  olivo; 

meat,  will   get   an  Umbrian  boar  'as  if  one  should  take  great  pains 

that  has  lived  on  acorns.'  —  ulvis:  to  get  good  wine,  but  be  careless 

sedge,   i  about  the  quality  of  the  olive  oil.' 

44.     fecundae:  prolific,  in  gen-  51-54-    crassi:  roughness,  harsh- 

eral ;  but  the  use  of  the  feminine  ness  of  taste. — tenuabitur:    will 

appears  to   be  intentional.      The  be  refined  out  of  it.  —  lino:    'the 

emphasis  is  upon  armos;  the  true  straining  of  wine  through  a  piece 

epicure  will   select  for  his  guests  of  linen  spoils  the  flavor.' 

the   forelegs  of  the   female  hare.  55-57.     vafer:  cf.  doctus,  vs.  19, 

Cf.  Sat.  2,  8,  89.  sapiens,  vs.  44.  —  faece :  a  slight 

46.    ante  meum:  cf.   the  claim  mixture  of  the  lees  of  Falernian 

205 


2,  4,  S63  HORATI 

vina.,  columbine  limum  bene  colligit  ovo, 
quatenus  ima  petit  volvens  aliena  vitellus. 
Tostis  marcentem  squillis  recreabis  et  Afra 
potorem  cochlea :  nam  lactuca  innatat  acri 

60      post  vinum  stomacho ;  perna  magis  ac  magis  hillis 
flagitat  immorsus  refici ;  quin  omnia  malit, 
quaecumque  immundis  fervent  allata  popinis. 
Est  operae  pretium  duplicis  pernoscere  iuris 
naturam.     Simplex  e  dulci  constat  olivo, 

65      quod  pingui  miscere  mero  muriaque  decebit, 
non  alia  quam  qua  Byzantia  putuit  orca. 
Hoc  ubi  confusum  seeds  inferbuit  herbis 
Corycioque  croco  spars um  stetit,  insuper  addes 
pressa  Venafranae  quod  baca  remisit  olivae. 

70      Picenis  cedunt  pomis  Tiburtia  suco ; 

nam  facie  praestant.     Venucula  convenit  ollis ; 
rectius  Albanam  fumo  duraveris  uvam. 
Hanc  ego  cum  malis,  ego  faecem  primus  et  allec, 
primus  et  invenior  piper  album  cum  sale  nigro 

gives  body  to  the  light  Surrentine  64-69.  The  simple  sauce  con- 
wine. —  limum:  the  sediment. —  sists  of  olive  oil  mixed  with  thick 
volvens  aliena  :  gathering  the  for-  wine  and  brine  (tnuria)  from  a 
eign  matter.  — vitellus  :  the  yolk.  jar  in  which  fish  from  Byzantium 
58-63.  Various  kinds  of  food  had  been  pickled.  This  is  calted 
which  will  tempt  the  appetite  of  duplex  when  it  has  been  poured 
one  who  has  taken  much  wine  over  chopped  herbs  and  boiled, 
(tnarcetitem  potoreni).  —  Tostis  then  sprinkled  with  saffron  and 
.  .  .  squillis :  fried  shrimps.  —  allowed  to  stand,  and  finally  mixed 
cochlea :  snails.  —  lactuca :  lettuce.  with  Venafran  oil. 

—  perna:  ham.  —  hillis :  sausages.  71.     Venucula :  sc.  uva ;  grapes 

—  immorsus :    bitten,    i.e.    stimn-  for  preserving. 

lated  to  fresh  appetite.  72.    duraveris :  dry  into  raisins. 

63.    Est  operae  pretium :  an  epic          73-75-     cum  malis:  i.e.  he  first 

phrase.  used   raisins   with   fruit.  —  allec : 

206 


SERMONES  [2,  4,  91 

75      incretum  puris  circumposuisse  catillis. 

Immane  est  vitium  dare  milia  terna  macello 
angustoque  vagos  piscis  urgere  catino. 
Magna  movet  stomacho  fastidia,  seu  puer  unctis 
tractavit  calicem  manibus,  dum  furta  ligurrit, 

Bo      sive  gravis  veteri  craterae  limus  adhaesit. 

Vilibus  in  scopis,  in  mappis,  in  scobe  quantus 
consistit  sumptus  ?     Neglectis,  flagitium  ingens. 
Ten'  lapides  varies  lutulenta  radere  palma 
et  Tyrias  dare  circum  inluta  toralia  vestis, 

85      oblitum,  quanto  curam  sumptumque  minorem 
haec  habeant,  tanto  reprehendi  iustius  illis 
quae  nisi  divitibus  nequeant  contingere  mensis  ? 

Hor,     Docte  Cati,  per  amicitiam  divosque  rogatus, 
ducere  me  auditum,  perges  quocumque,  memento. 

90      Nam  quamvis  memori  referas  mihi  pectore  cuncta, 
non  tamen  interpres  tantundem  iuveris.     Adde 

something    like    caviare. — incre-  sawdust  sprinkled  upon  the  floor 

turn:      sifted     on.  —  puris   .   .  .  before  sweeping, 

catillis :     on    plates    which    held  83  f.      The    emphasis   is   upon 

nothing  else.  lutulenta  and  inluta. — palma:  a 

76-77.    milia  .  .  .  macello :  this  broom  of  palm  leaves, 

is  the  same  thing  that  is  said  in  86  f .     illis  quae :  in  general,  the 

vs.    37,    that    mere   spending  of  things  which   only   the  rich   can 

money  is   not  enough.  —  vagos  :  have ;  neatness  requires  only  care, 

the   line  expresses  in  high-flown  not  money. 

language  the  rule  that  fish  should  88.    Docte :   this  is  an   ironical 

not  be  crowded   together  on  too  acceptance    of    the    attitude    of 

small  a  platter.  Catius,   that    such   knowledge   is 

79.  furta  ligurrit:  cf.  Sat.  1,3,  true  learning. 

80  f.  91.     interpres  :  Catius  can  give 

80.  limus :  sediment  left  in  the  only  second-hand  reports.  —  Adde: 
mixing  bowl  because  it   had  not  and,  besides,  think  of  the  look  and 
been  properly  washed.  bearing.      All    this    has    especial 

81.  scopis:    brooms.  —  scobe:  point,  if  Horace  was  really  refer- 

207 


2,4,92]  HOKATI 

voltum  habitumque  hominis,  quern  tn  vidisse  beatus 
rion  magni  pendis,  quia  contigit ;  at  mihi  cura 
non  mediocris  inest,  fontis  ut  adire  remotos 
95      atque  haurire  queam  vitae  praecepta  beatae. 

ring  to  some  friend  who  was  at  94  f.  A  parody  of  Lucret.  I, 
times  earnest  in  laying  down  the  927  and  4,  2,  invat  integros  ac- 
gastronomic  law.  cedere  fontis  atque  haurire. 


The  date  of  this  satire  is  fixed  by  vss.  62  ff.  The  phrase  tellure 
inarique  magnus  would  not  have  been  used  in  the  years  just  before 
Actium,  when  it  was  increasingly  apparent  that  the  supremacy  by  sea 
was  still  to  be  decided.  After  Actium  there  was  a  general  expectation 
that  Octavius  would  carry  out  the  project  of  his  uncle  for  a  war  of  con- 
quest in  the  East  and  it  is  to  such  expectations  that  Part/its  horrendiis 
refers.  The  satire  was  written  soon  after  the  battle  of  Actium,  late  in 
3 1  or  early  in  30. 

The  subject-matter  is  the  practice  of  seeking  legacies.  To  treat  this 
as  a  profession,  however,  is  to  take  satire  too  seriously ;  it  was  a  social 
evil,  like  free  divorce  or  political  bribery,  which  the  satirist  ridicules  by 
assuming  an  ironical  seriousness.  The  custom  of  leaving  legacies,  often 
small,  but  not  infrequently  of  substantial  amount,  to  many  friends  was 
already  common  in  the  Ciceronian  period.  It  was  to  be  expected  that 
the  custom  would  lead  to  the  cultivation  of  friendships  in  the  hope  of  a 
legacy  and  the  tendency  was  strengthened  by  the  large  increase  of 
wealth  in  the  hands  of  men  who  did  not  know  how  to  use  it.  Such 
men,  often  of  the  freedman  class,  sometimes  without  family  connections, 
would  be  especially  open  to  the  flattering  approaches  of  persons  of 
higher  position. 

The  satire  is  a  continuation,  in  burlesque,  of  a  scene  in  the  Odyssey, 
u,  90  ff.  The  shade  of  the  Theban  seer,  Tiresias,  meets  Odysseus  in 
the  lower  world  and  at  his  request  tells  him  how  he  may  secure  his 
return  to  Ithaca  and  how  he  may  summon  the  shade  of  his  mother. 
After  this  interview  the  seer  returns  (vss.  150  f.)  to  the  home  of  Hades. 
At  this  point  Horace  interjects  the  conversation  which  forms  this  satire. 
The  selection  of  the  venerable  prophet  of  Thebes  to  give  advice  such 
as  this  is  as  happy  as  the  selection  of  Trebatius  in  Sat.  2,  i,  and  Odys- 

208 


SERMONES  [2,  5,  S 

seus,  with  the  mingling  of  the  crafty  and  the  heroic  in  his  traditional 
character,  is  admirably  suited  to  receive  the  doctrine. 

Tiavesty  of  heroic  legends  had  a  considerable  place  in  Greek  litera- 
ture, especially  in  comedy ;  Plautus  has  one  example  in  the  Amphitruo 
and  Varro  had  used  it  in  his  Saturae  Menippeae.  It  has  been  fre- 
quently used  in  modern  literature ;  Thackeray's  Rebecca  and  Rowena 
and  Mark  Twain's  A  Yankee  in  King  Arthur's  Court  are  familiar  ex- 
amples. Horace  has  combined  the  humor  of  travesty  with  the  humor 
of  pretended  seriousness  in  the  treatment  of  his  subject-matter,  like  the 
seriousness  of  De  Quincey  in  Murder  as  a  Fine  Art. 

Vlixes.     Hoc  quoque,  Tiresia,  praeter  narrata  petenti 
responde,  quibus  amissas  reparare  queam  res 
artibus  atque  modis.  Quid  rides?  Tiresias.  lamnedoloso 
non  satis  est  Ithacam  revehi  patriosque  penatis 
5     aspicere  ?      Vlix.     O  nulli  quicquam  mentite,  vides  ut 
•  nudus  inopsque  domum  redeam,  te  vate;  neque  illic 
aut  apotheca  procis  intacta  est  aut  pecus ;  atqui 
et  genus  et  virtus,  nisi  cum  re,  vilior  alga  est. 

1.  praeter     narrata :      i.e.    the  6.  nudus    inopsque :    this    had 
prophecy  as  to  his  safe  return  to  been  distinctly  said  (Od.  n,  114 
Ithaca.     Narrare  in  its  colloquial  ff.).  —  tevate:  according  to  your 
sense,  tell,  speak.  prophecy ;     not    quite    as    if    he 

2.  amissas  ...  res :     the    seer  doubted   the   seer,   but  as   if  he 
had  told  him  of  the   havoc  that  accepted    it    unwillingly.  —  neque 
the   suitors  were   making  of  his  illic :   nor,  when  I  get  there. 
property  at  home.  7.  procis :  the  suitors  of  Penel- 

3.  Quid  rides :  the  seer  smiled  ope,   avSpas   i>7re/3<£taAovs,    ot   TOI 
at  the  desire  of  Ulysses  for  a  little  /Si'orov  Kare'Soucru/.  —  apotheca,  pe- 
more,   after  he    had   received   so  cus:  the  anxiety  of  Odysseus  and 
much. — doloso:   a  translation   of  of  his  son  Telemachus  about  the 
the  standing  epithets  TroAvV/aoTros,  consumption  of  provisions  by  the 
TroAu/x^xaj'os,  but  with  a  touch  of  suitors,  natural  as  it  is  to  the  Ho- 
sarcasm.  meric   simplicity,   seemed   to   the 

4.  penatis :  the  anachronism  of  Roman,  as  it  seems  to  the  modern 
the  Roman  idea  is  intentional.  reader,  a  little  comic. 

5.  nulli .  .  .  mentite :  so  Tiresias  8.   vilior    alga :    proverbial    for 
says    of    himself    (Od.    11,    96),  worthlessness ;    the  expression  is 

ciTTw.  perhaps  selected  with  special  ref- 

HOR.  SAT.  —  14  209 


2,  5»  9] 


HORATI 


Tir.    Quando  pauperiem,  missis  ambagibus,  horres, 
10     accipe  qua  ratione  queas  ditescere.     Turdus 
sive  aliud  privum  dabitur  tibi,  devolet  illuc 
res  ubi  magna  nitet  domino  sene ;  dulcia  poma 
et  quoscumque  feret  cultus  tibi  fundus  honores, 
ante  larem  gustet  venerabilior  lare  dives ; 
15      qui  quamvis  periurus  erit,  sine  gente,  cruentus 
sanguine  fraterno,  fugitivus,  ne  tamen  illi 
tu  comes  exterior,  si  postulet,  ire  recuses. 
Vlix.     Vtne  tegam  spurco  Damae  latus  ?     Haud  ita 
Troiae 


erence  to  the  sea- beaten  Odys- 
seus. —  The  sentiment  of  the 
line  is,  of  course,  intentionally 
unheroic. 

9.  missis  ambagibus:  without 
any  pretence,  in  plain  words. 

10  ff.  Turdus :  cf.  Sat.  I,  5,  72. — 
privum :  for  your  own ;  pred.  with 
dabitur.  The  fact  that  it  was  the 
special  property  of  the  giver  will 
add  to  its  value  in  the  eyes  of  the 
receiver.  —  devolet:  with  humor- 
ous effect,  in  both  literal  and 
figurative  meaning.  —  nitet :  flour- 
ishes ;  i.e.  be  sure  that  the  prop- 
erty is  large  and  unincumbered.  — 
The  abrupt  beginning  and  the 
rather  obscure  expression  is  a  par- 
ody of  the  ordinary  style  of  proph- 
ecy, obscuris  vera  involvens  (Aen. 
6,  100). 

13.  honores:  fruits  and  flowers, 
as  in  Carm.  I,  17,  16. 

14.  ante  larem :   the  first-fruits 
were  properly  offered  to  the  Lar 
Familiaris. 


15.  sine  gente:  of 'no  family ;  a 
freedman  or  a  slave  had  no  legal 
claim  to  be  gentilis.  There  is  no 
necessary  connection  with  ftigiti- 
vus,  since  no  definite  persom  is  in 
mind ;  the  various  discreditable 
attributes  are  piled  together,-  as 
in  Carm.  2,  13,  5  ff. ;  Epod.  3, 
I  f. 

17.  comes  exterior:    'to  escort 
him,  walking   on    his   left   side ' ; 
this  is  expressed  in  the  next  line 
by  tegam  .  .  .  latus.     It  was  the 
Greek  and  the  Roman  custom  for 
the  inferior,  as  escort,  to  walk  on 
the   left  side.      The   explanation 
given  was  that  the  left  side  was 
more  open   to   attack,   the   right 
being    protected    by    the    drawn 
sword.  —  si  postulet:  in  the  collo- 
quial sense  of  postulare,  to  expect, 
desire. 

1 8.  Vtne  tegam:  a  common  form 
of  repudiating  exclamation.  —  Da- 
mae :  a  common  name  of  a  slave ; 
cf.  Sat.  i,  6,  38. 


210 


SERMONES 


27 


me  gessi,  certans  semper  melioribus.      Tir.    Ergo 

pauper  eris.   Vlix.  Fortem  hoc  animum  tolerare  iubebo  ; 

et  quondam  maiora  tuli.     Tu  protinus,  unde 

divitias  aerisque  ruam  die,  augur,  acervos. 

Tir.    Dixi  equidem  et  dico  :  captes  astutus  ubique 

testamenta  senum,  neu,  si  vafer  unus  et  alter 

insidiatorem  praeroso  fugerit  hamo, 

aut  spem  deponas  aut  artem  illusus  omittas. 

Magna  minorve  foro  si  res  certabitur  olim, 


19.  melioribus:  dat. ;  the  phrase 
appears  to  be  a  reminiscence  of  //. 
21,  486,  Kpeicrcrocriv  fjid^efrOai  and 
means  '  with  men  of  the  better 
class,'  Achilles  and  Ajax. — Ergo: 
well,  then. 

20  f .  A  translation  of  the  words 
with  which  Odysseus  encourages 
himself  before  the  slaughter  of  the 
suitors,  Od.  20,  18:  reVXa^i  817, 
Kpa&rr  Ka.i  KvvTtpov  aAAo  TTOT' 
Ir/Yrjs.  The  point  of  the  quota- 
tion here  is  that  the  hero  is  en- 
couraging himself  to  endure  a 
humiliation  (/toe  means  comes  .  .  . 
ire)  in  order  to  make  money. 
Cf.  the  similar  remark  in  Sat.  i, 
9,  59  f.,  nil  sine  magno  vita  labor e 
tf edit  mortalibus. 

21.  protinus:  go  ahead  and  tell 
me.     The    completeness    of   the 
surrender  of  the   heroic   pose   is 
emphasized    by   the    moment    of 
indignant  repudiation. 

22.  ruam:       transitive,      in      a 
vaguely  poetic  use  ;  rush  together, 
quickly  collect.  —  augur:    with   in- 
tentional Roman  coloring. 

23.  Dixi  .  .  .  et  dico:    he    had 


not,  in  fact,  said  anything  that 
was  really  intelligible,  vss.  10-17 
being  obscure  and  having  no  ap- 
parent bearing  on  the  getting  of 
money.  But  it  all  seemed  plain 
to  the  prophet,  and  he  there- 
fore speaks  here  with  some  im- 
patience and  then  goes  on  to 
put  it  in  words  as  plain  as  a 
prophet  can  use  ;  captes  ... 
testamenta. 

25.  praeroso:     i.e.    nibbles    off 
the  bait  and  gets  away.     The  fig- 
ure  is    suggested    in    captes  and 
carried  on  to  greater  distinctness 
in  praeroso  hamo. 

26.  artem:     i.e.    the   ars   cap- 
tandt,  ars  piscandi.     In  so  far  as 
this  hints  at  a  profession  of  leg- 
acy-hunting, it  is  like  our  speaking 
of  the  profession    of  burglary  or 
wire-pulling.  —  illusus :    '  because 
you  have  failed  once.' 

27.  minorve :  added  as  an  after- 
thought ;  l  an  important  case  —  or 
even  one  that  is  not  so  important,' 
for  the  diligent  man  allows  nothing 
to  escape  him.  —  olim:  sometime ; 
of  the  future,  as  often. 


211 


2,  5,  28] 


HORATI 


vivet  uter  locuples  sine  gnatis,  improbus,  ultro 
qui  meliorem  audax  vocet  in  ius,  illius  esto 

30      defensor ;  fama  civem  causaque  priorem 

sperne,  domi  si  gnatus  erit  fecundave  coniunx. 

'  Quinte,'  puta,  aut '  Publi '  (gaudent  praenomine  molles 

auriculae)  '  tibi  me  virtus  tua  fecit  amicum ; 

ius  anceps  novi,  causas  defendere  possum  ; 

35      eripiet  quivis  oculos  citius  mihi,  quam  te 

contemptum  cassa  nuce  pauperet ;  haec  mea  cura  est, 
ne  quid  tu  perdas,  neu  sis  iocus.'     Ire  domum  atque 
pelliculam  curare  iube ;  fi  cognitor  ipse. 
Persta  atque  obdura,  seu  '  rubra  Canicula  findet 

28  ff.    uter:     whichever  of  the      shortened  in  comedy,  and  as  this 


two  parties  to  the  suit.  —  impro- 
bus :  coordinate  with  locuples  and 
defined  by  the  following  clause. — 
ultro :  actually ;  going  so  far  in 
his  impudence  (audax)  as  to  bring 
a  suit  without  justification.  —  il- 
lius: emphatic;  'that's  the  man 
for  you  to  back.' — fama  .  .  .  cau- 
saque priorem :  a  fuller  expression 
of  the  idea  in  meliorem ;  the  dig- 
nified civem  adds  to  the  contrast, 
the  other  being  sine  gente,  a  freed- 
man.  —  fecunda:  with  the  possi- 
bility of  natural  heirs. 

32.  Quinte:  as  a  sign  of  famili- 
arity and  affection.  The  genuine 
Roman  praenomen  Quintus  or 
Publius  would  be  agreeable  to  the 
freedman,  who  during  his  slavery 
had  had  some  foreign  name  like 
Dama  or  Syrus.  —  puta :  for  in- 
stance. As  an  impv.  this  has  reg- 
ularly a  long  a,  but  the  final  vowel 
of  iambic  :mpv.  forms  is  often 


word  passed  over  into  semi-ad- 
verbial uses,  it  retained  the  collo- 
quial quantity. 

34.  ius  anceps :  the  uncertain- 
ties of  the  law,  with  a  suggestion 
of  the  tricks  of  the  unscrupulous 
lawyer. 

36.  contemptum :  with  the  force 
of  a  verb ;  bring  you  into  con- 
tempt. —  cassa  nuce  :  a  proverbial 
phrase  (Plaut.  Pseud.  371  ;  Rud. 

1324)- 

38.  pelliculam :    so  cutem  cu- 
rare, Epist.  i,  2,  29 ;  other  objects 
(membra.  Sat.  2,  2,  80  f.,  corpora, 
se  suamque  aetaleni)  are  used  with 
curare  in  the  same  general  sense, 
'  to  take  care  of  one's  health.'    Pel- 
liculam is  used  with  special  effect, 
his  precious  health.  —  cognitor :  in 
the  legal  sense,  attorney. 

39.  Persta  atque  obdura  :  a  col- 
loquialism; Plaut.  Asin.  322,  per- 
negabo  atque  obduraboi  Catull.  8, 


212 


SERMONES 


5.  51 


40      infantis  statuas,'  seii  pingui  tentus  omaso 
Furius  'hibernas  cana  nive  conspuet  Alpis.' 
'  Nonne  vides,'  aliquis  cubito  stantem  prope  tangens 
inquit,  '  ut  patiens  !  ut  amicis  aptus  !  ut  acer  ! ' 
plures  adnabunt  thynni  et  cetaria  crescent. 

45          Si  cui  praeterea  validus  male  films  in  re 
praeclara  sublatus  aletur,  ne  manifestum 
caelibis  obsequium  nudet  te,  leniter  in  spem 
adrepe  officiosus,  ut  et  scribare  secundus 
heres,  et,  si  quis  casus  puerum  egerit  Oreo, 

50      in  vacuum  venias  :  perraro  haec  alea  fallit. 

Qui  testamentum  tradet  tibi  cumque  legendum, 


1 1,  perfer,  obdura ;  Ovid,  Trist.  5, 
11,7,  perfer  et  obdura. 

39  ff.  The  quotations  are  from 
a  lost  poem  of  M.  Furius  Bibacu- 
lus,  of  Cremona,  a  contemporary 
of  Cicero,  still  living  at  the  time 
this  was  written  and  already  al- 
luded to  in  Sat.  i,  10,  36.  The 
first  phrase,  rubra  .  .  .  statuas, 
meaning  '  in  extreme  heat,'  is  tur- 
gid in  conception  and  in  single 
words,  especially  infantis, '  speech- 
less.' The  second  is  quoted  also 
by  Quintil.  8,  6,  17  as  an  example 
of  poor  rhetoric,  with  hippiter  as 
the  first  word ;  Horace  has  sub- 
stituted the  poet's  own  name. 
The  personal  allusion  in  pingui 
.  .  .  omaso, l  stuffed  with  fat  tripe,' 
is  offensive  to  modern  taste  and 
the  particular  justification  for  it 
is  not  known. 

42.  prope  :  with  stantem ;  stand- 
ing next  to  him  in  the  law-court. 

44.   cetaria :  this  must  mean  a 


fish-pond  or  weir,  which  is  at  the 
same  time  a  trap  and  a  place  for 
keeping  fish  alive  until  they  are 
wanted  for  the  table.  The.  figure 
is  not  exactly  the  same  as  that  in 
vs.  25. 

45 .  praeterea :  furthermore,  in  - 
troducing  the  special  precepts  of 
vss.  45-50.  —  validus  male:  = /«- 
validus. 

46.  sublatus :     recognized,   lit., 
taken    up ;    the    new-born    child 
was  placed  before  the  father,  who 
recognized  it  as  his  by  taking  it  up. 

47.  caelibis:      objective     gen. 
with   obsequium.  —  nudet  te :   ex- 
pose you,  betray   your   plans   to 
your  victims. 

48  f.  ut :  the  clause  is  explica- 
tive of  spem.  —  secundus  heres  : 
i.e.  to  inherit  in  case  of  the  death 
of  the  first-named  heir.  —  Oreo  : 
the  seer  uses  epic  language. 

51-69.  A  warn  ing  against  being 
taken  in  by  the  testator. 


213 


2,  5.  52] 


abnuere  et  tabulas  a  te  removere  memento, 
sic  tamen,  ut  limis  rapias,  quid  prima  secundo 
cera  velit  versu  ;  solus  multisne  coheres, 
55      veloci  percurre  oculo.     Plerumque  recoctus 
scriba  ex  quinqueviro  corvum  deludet  hiantem, 
captatorque  dabit  risus  Nasica  Corano. 
Vlix.    Num    furis?    an    prudens    ludis    me    obscura 

canendo  ? 
Tir.   O  Laertiade,  quicquid  dicam  aut  erit  aut  non  : 


51  ff.  Qui  .  .  .  cumque:  cf. 
quando  .  .  .  cumque,  Sat.  \ ,  9,  33. 
—  memento :  be  sure,  don't  forget. 
The  point  is  to  make  a  show  of 
indifference  to  the  question  of 
money.  —  sic  tamen :  in  such  a 
way,  however.  —  limis :  sc.  oculis  ; 
the  noun  is  so  frequently  omitted 
that  in  late  Latin  limis  was  mis- 
taken for  a  nom.  sing. ;  with  a 
side  glance.  —  prima  .  .  .  cera  : 
the  will  was  written  on  wax  tab- 
lets with  raised  edges,  which  could 
be  tied  together  and  sealed.  On 
the  inside  of  the  first  leaf  the  name 
of  the  testator  was  written  in  the 
first  line  and  the  name  of  the  heir 
in  the  second  (secundo  versit). 
The  fixed  position  of  the  names 
made  it  easy  to  read  them  at  a 
glance.  —  quid  .  .  .  velit :  -what 
the  first  page  says;  the  sense  is 
different  when  sibi  is  added,  as  in 
vs.  61. 

55  ff.  This  instance  of  the  un- 
happy result  of  a  neglect  of  the 
precautions  just  mentioned  is  put 
in  the  form  of  a  reference  to  an 


event  of  Horace's  time,  which  the 
seer  relates  as  a  prophecy  (deliidet, 
dabit)  and  in  the  ambiguous  lan- 
guage of  an  oracle.  Of  course 
all  the  Roman  words  and  names 
(scriba,  quinquevir,  Nasica,  Cora- 
nus)  are  unintelligible  to  Ulysses, 
and  the  fable  of  the  Fox  and  the 
Raven  was  unknown  to  him.  — 
recoctus :  boiled  over,  with  a  ref- 
erence to  the  Medea  legend. — 
quinqueviro :  a  subordinate  police 
official — Coranus  —  who  had  risen 
to  the  unimportant  office  of  scriba. 
The  details  increase  the  perplexity 
of  Ulysses  and  help  to  make  the 
whole  incident  ridiculous. 

59  f.  aut  erit  aut  non :  as  Tire- 
sias  is  supposed  to  mean  it,  this 
would  be  '  what  I  say  will  happen, 
will,  and  what  I  say  will  not  hap- 
pen, will  not,'  but  the  possible 
double  meaning  makes  it  a  bur- 
lesque of  the  solemn  claims  of 
sooth-sayers.  The  verse  is  quoted 
by  Boethius  (de  Cons.  5,  3)  as 
vaticinium  illud  ridiculum  Tire- 
siae.  The  absurdity  is  heightened 


214 


SERMONES 


[2,5,69 


60      divinare  etenim  magnus  mihi  donat  Apollo. 

Vlix.    Quid  taraen  ista  velit  sibi  fabula,  si  licet,  ede. 
7».    Tempore  quo  iuvenis  Parthis  horrendus,  ab  alto 
demissum  genus  Aenea,  tellure  marique 
magnus  erit,  forti  nubet  procera  Corano 

65      filia  Nasicae,  metuentis  reddere  soldum. 

Turn  gener  hoc  faciet :  tabulas  socero  dabit  atque 
ut  legat  orabit;  multum  Nasica  negatas 
accipiet  tandem  et  tacitus  leget,  invenietque 
nil  sibi  legatum  praeter  plorare  suisque. 


by  the  next  verse  in  Homeric 
style. — donat:  present,  as  if  he 
felt  the  gift  of  the  god  at  that 
moment. 

61.  The  reply  of  Ulysses  is 
more  humble  (si  licet)  than  vs. 
58,  as  if  he  had  been  impressed 
by  the  lofty  tone  of  vss.  59-60. 
—  tamen  :  i.e.  i  but  nevertheless  I 
should  like  to  understand  the 
story,  if  I  may.1  —  Quid  .  .  .  velit 
sibi :  what  it  means. 

62  ff.  The  seer  re-tells  the  story 
in  plain  language,  with  an  intro- 
duction in  the  heroic  style.  On 
the  date  see  introd.  to  this  satire. 

62  f.  iuvenis :  Octavius  was  a 
little  over  thirty.  —  demissum:  cf. 
Aen.  I,  288,  a  magno  demissum. 
nomen  lulo.  —  genus:  cf.  Sat.  i, 
6,  1 2,  Valeri  genus,  in  apposition 
with  a  proper  noun,  as  here  with 
iuvenis. 

64.  forti,  procera  :  stock  epi- 
thets (cf.  Sat.  2,  3,  216)  used  in 
derision  in  this  case,  where  the 
inducement  to  the  marriage  was 


neither  courage  nor  beauty,  but 
the  payment  of  a  debt. 

65.  metuentis:  the  sense  of 
metuo  is  frequently  weakened,  es- 
pecially when  it  takes  an  infin.,  to 
meanings  like  hesitate,  be  unwill- 
ing] cf.  Carm.  2,  2,  7,  penna 
metuente solvi.  —  soldum:  the  syn- 
copated colloquial  form  for  soli- 
dum,  the  principal  of  the  debt. 
The  point  is  that  as  Nasica  was 
unwilling  to  pay  a  debt  (presum- 
ably to  Coranus),  he  gave  Coranus 
his  daughter  instead,  hoping  that 
the  son-in-law  would  leave  to  him 
or  to  his  daughter  a  sum  which 
would  more  than  counterbalance 
the  debt.  The  relative  age  of 
father-in-law  and  son-in-law  is  left 
out  of  account,  or  the  case  is  like 
the  marriage  of  Pompey  to  Caesar's 
daughter. 

66 ff.  tabulas:  the  will,  as  in 
vs.  52.  —  multum  .  .  .  negatas : 
i.e.  having  made  a  great  show  of 
refusing,  as  advised  in  vs.  52.  — 
praeter  plorare :  the  prepos.  gov* 


215 


2.  5.  7°] 


HORATI 


70          Illud  ad  haec  iubeo  :  mulier  si  forte  dolosa 
libertusve  senem  delirum  temperet,  illis 
accedas  socius  ;  laudes,  lauderis  ut  absens  ; 
adiuvat  hoc  quoque,  sed  vincit  longe  prius  ipsum 
expugnare  caput.    Scribet  mala  carmina  vecors  : 

75      laudato.     Scortator  erit :  cave  te  roget ;  ultro 
Penelopam  facilis  potiori  trade.      Vlix.    Putasne 
perduci  poterit  tarn  frugi  tamque  pudica, 
quam  nequiere  proci  recto  depellere  cursu  ? 
Tir.   Venit  enim  magnum  donandi  parca  iuventus 

80      nee  tantum  Veneris,  quantum  studiosa  culinae. 
Sic  tibi  Penelope  frugi  est,  quae  si  semel  uno 


erns  the  infin.  as  a  noun.  Plorare 
means  to  lament  and,  as  used  in 
the  will,  it  would  mean  that  Cora- 
nus  left  to  Nasica  the  legacy  of 
grief  which  his  death  would  cause, 
but  with  an  ironical  suggestion  of 
the  grief  that  he  would  feel  at 
receiving  no  legacy  in  money. 
Cf.  Sat.  I,  10,  91. 

70-74,  '  Do  not  disdain  to  play 
a  second  part  as  a  helper  to  others 
who  may  be  managing  an  old  man.' 

—  ad  haec :  cf.  praeterea,  vs.  45. 

—  mulier  .  .  .  libertusve :  i.e.  un- 
der   the    most  discreditable  and 
humiliating  influences.  —  delirum : 
childish  i  cf.  Cic.  de  Sen.  u,  36, 
senilis  stultitia  quae  deliratio  ap- 
pellari solet.  —  ipsum  .  .  .  caput: 
the  old  man  himself. 

74.  Scribet :  a  condition  ex- 
pressed without  si,  in  parataxis. 

—  vecors :  cf.  excors,  S&t.  2,  3,  67. 
76  f.   potiori  :  so  in   Epod.  15, 

13.  —  Putasne  .  .  .  poterit:  para- 


taxis like  the  English,  do  you  think 
she  can  .  .  .  ?  This  is  very  com- 
mon in  colloquial  Latin,  e.g.  Plaut. 
Rud.  1269,  censen  hodie  desponde- 
bit  earn  mihi  f 

78.  nequiere  proci:    the  faith- 
fulness of  Penelope  had  become 
in   Horace's  time    the  main   ele- 
ment in  the  story  of  the  suitors, 
and  it  is  alluded  to  here  as  a  well- 
known   fact,  but  it  had   in  truth 
been  barely  hinted  at  by  Tiresias 
(Od.  11,  117)  and  would  not  be 
known  to  Ulysses. 

79.  enim :    of  course,  for.  — 
magnum :  obj.  of  donandi,  which 
depends  upon  parca.     They  gave 
gifts,  but  not  big   enough  gifts ; 
this  adds  a  touch  to  the  travesty 
of  the  heroic,  to  which,  indeed, 
this  part  of  the  story  is  particu- 
larly exposed ;  cf.  Od.  18,  275-280. 

81.  Sic  .  .  .  quae  si:  under 
such  conditions  (with  stingy  suit- 
ors) .  .  . ,  but  if  she  .  .  .  —  semel 


216 


SERMONES 


91 


de  sene  gustarit  tecum  partita  lucellum, 

ut  earns  a  corio  numquam  absterrebitur  uncto. 

Me  sene   quod  dicam    factum  est :    anus    improba 
Thebis 

85      ex  testamento  sic  est  elata  :  cadaver 

unctum  oleo  largo  nudis  umeris  tulit  heres, 
scilicet  elabi  si  posset  mortua  ;  credo, 
quod  nimium  institerat  viventi.     Cautus  adito, 
neu  desisoperae,  neve  immoderatus  abundes. 

90      Difficilem  et  morosum  offendet  garrulus  ;  ultra 
non  etiam  sileas ;  Davus  sis  comicus,  atque 


uno  :    just    once  from    one   old 
man. 

83.  The  line  is  a  condensed 
comparison ;  '  it  will  be  as  hard 
to  get  her  away  as  to  .  .  .' — a 
corio  .  .  .  uncto :  a  Greek  saying, 
like  the  English  *  to  drive  a  dog 
away  from  his  bone.1 

84-88.  A  story  to  enforce  the 
need  of  caution  in  one's  atten- 
tions.—  Me  sene:  Tiresias  had 
long  been  dead,  and  .he  refers 
back  to  the  time  when  he  was 
an  old  man,  as  an  old  man  refers 
to  his  youth  with  me  pnero  or  me 
iuvene.  Cf.  Sat.  2,  2,  112  f.,  puer 
.  .  .  ego  .  .  .  Ofellutn  .  .  .  novi.  — 
sic  est  elata :  i.e.  was  to  be  car- 
ried out  for  burial,  if  the  heir 
could  fulfil  the  condition.  —  scilicet 
.  .  .  si :  to  see,  you  understand, 
whether ;  this  use  of  si  is  explained 
in  the  grammars. — nimium  in- 
stiterat: i.e.  she  had  never  been 
able  to  slip  away  from  him  while 
she  was  alive. 


88.  Cautus :    the  moral  of  the 
story,  expanded  in  the  following 
lines. 

89.  operae:    dat,  as   in  hand 
mihi  dero,  Sat.  I,  9,  56. 

90  f.  Difficilem,  morosum :  these 
words  are  used  of  old  men  by 
Cicero  {de  Sen.  18,  65).  —  ultra: 
'don't  even  be  too  silent.'  Cf. 
the  rebuke  of  the  impatient  judge 
to  the  talkative  lawyer :  f  The 
Court  wants  nothing  from  you 
but  silence  —  and  not  very  much 
of  that?  —  non :  there  are  occa- 
sional uses  of  non  with  a  subjv. 
like  this  scattered  through  Latin 
writers  [Schmalz,  Lat.  Synt.3 
§  205],  especially  in  poetry  and 
in  Low  Latin.  Such  instances  are 
usually  explained  by  connecting 
non  with  some  single  idea  in  the 
sentence,  other  than  the  verb,  or  by 
twisting  the  subjv.  into  a  potential 
meaning.  —  comicus  :  be  like  Davus 
in  the  comedy.  Davus  was  a  stock 
name  for  the  confidential  slave. 


217 


HORATI 


stes  capite  obstipo,  multum  similis  metuenti. 
Obsequiograssare  ;  mone,  si  increbuit  aura, 
cautus  uti  velet  carum  caput ;  extrahe  turba 

95      oppositis  umeris  ;  aurem  substringe  loquaci. 
Importunus  amat  laudari ;  donee  '  Ohe  iam ! ' 
ad  caelum  manibus  sublatis  dixerit,  urge, 
crescentem  tumidis  infla  sermonibus  utrem. 
Cum  te  servitio  longo  curaque  levarit, 

ioo    et  certum  vigilans,  '  Quartae  sit  partis  Vlixes ' 
audieris  '  heres  ' :  '  Ergo  nunc  Dama  sodalis 
nusquam  est  ?   Vnde  mihi  tam  fortem  tamque  fidelem  ? ' 

92.   capite  obstipo:  this  is  the      scribet,   74.  —  Ohe    iam:    the    full 


attitude  of  extreme  deference,  rep- 
resented in  vase-paintings  and  in 
the  illustrated  Ms.  of  Terence.  — 
multum:  with  metuenti$  'like  a 
man  deeply  respectful.'  [Usually 
taken  with  similis,  on  the  basis  of 
Epist.  i,  10,  3 ;  in  that  passage, 
however,  the  contrast  demands  an 
emphasis  upon  dissimiles,  which  is 
quite  out  of  place  here.  There 
are  parallels  enough  to  the  use 
of  multum  (as  well  as  multa)  with 
such  a  verb  as  metuo.] 

93.  Obsequio:  the  emphatic 
word;  it  makes  a  slight  inten- 
tional contrast  with  grassare, 
which  carries  the  suggestion  of 
approach  with  an  unfriendly  pur- 
pose ;  get  at  him  by  flattery. 

95.  substringe:  i.e.  gather  up 
your  ear  with   your  hand,  as  if 
anxious  not  to  lose  a  word. 

96.  Importunus :  insatiate,  ex- 
acting, as  in  Epist.  2,  2,  185. — 
amat :  a  paratactic  condition,  like 


form,  ohe  iam  satis  est,  is  used  in 
Sat.  i,  5,  12  f.  and  ohe  iam  satis 
in  Plaut.  Stick.  734.  The  phrase 
was  so  fixed  that  the  meaning  was 
suggested  without  satis. 

98.  tumidis :   swelling,  in   the 
active  sense ;  cf.  Verg.  Aen.  3,  357, 
tumido  inflatur  .  .  .  Austro.     A 
similar  figure  is  used  in  Sat.  i ,  4, 1 9. 

99.  levarit:   shall  release  you 
by  his  death. 

100.  certum  vigilans :  <  be  per- 
fectly   sure    that    you    are    wide 
awake,   that  it   is   no   dream.'  — 
Quartae  sit :  as  if  quoted  from  the 
will,    though    the    exact    formula 
would  be    Vlixes  heres   ex  qua- 
drante  esto. 

101  f.  Ergo :  so  then  ;  the  con- 
ventional word  to  introduce  an 
expression  of  grief.  Cf.  Carm.  I, 
24,  5  ;  Ovid,  Trist.  3,  2,  I .  —  soda- 
lis :  cf.  vs.  1 8,  sfiurco  Damae. — 
nusquam  est  :  one  of  the  many 
periphrases  for  death. 


218 


SERMONES  (  2,  5,  1 10 

sparge  subinde,  et,  si  paulum  potes,  illacrimare  :  est 
gaudia  prodentem  voltum  celare.    Sepulchrum 

105    permissum  arbitrio  sine  sordibus  exstrue ;  funus 
egregie  factum  laudet  vicinia.     Si  quis 
forte  coheredum  senior  male  tussiet,  huic  tu 
die,  ex  parte  tua  seu  fundi  sive  domus  sit 
emptor,  gaudentem  nummo  te  addicere.  —  Sed  me 

no    imperiosa  trahit  Proserpina:  vive  valeque  ! 

103  f .  sparge :  the  object  is  the  other  considerations ' ;  the  form 
preceding  remark.  —  paulum:  in  of  legal  sale  is  gone  through  in 
sense  with  illacrimare  as  well  as  order  to  make  the  gift  valid, 
with  potes.  —  est:  it  is  your  part,  no.  imperiosa:  so  saeva  Pro- 
it  is  for  you  to. —  gaudia:  obj.  of  serpina,  Carm.  i,  28,  20;  she  is 
prodentem.  the  mistress  of  the  dreaded  under- 

105  f .   permissum  arbitrio :  i.e.  world.     But  there  is  a  bit  of  trav- 

when    no  specific    directions   are  esty    in    the    abruptness    of    the 

given.     The  emphatic  words  are  farewell,  which   is  quite  different 

sine  sordibus  and  (in  106)  egregie  from  the  dignified  withdrawal  of 

factum.  Tiresias   in   the    Homeric   scene, 

108  f.    sive  sit  emptor:   if  he  Od.  1 1,  150  f.     The  common  for- 

should  wish  to  buy.  —  nummo :  our  mula  of  farewell,  vine  valeque y  is 

formula   is,  '  for   one   dollar  and  also  used  with  humorous  effect. 

6 

This  satire  was  written  at  about  the  same  time  as  the  preceding 
(2,  5),  late  in  31  B.C.  or  early  in  30.  The  'chilling  rumor  about  the 
Dacians'  (vss.  50,  53)  refers  to  the  popular  fear  of  an  invasion  of  Italy 
by  the  Daci  after  the  battle  of  Actium,  and  the  uncertainty  in  regard  to 
the  allotment  of  land  to  the  veterans  (vss.  55  f.)  was  terminated  by  the 
brief  visit  of  Octavius  to  Brundisium  early  in  30.  Other  indications 
(38)  point  to  the  same  date. 

The  connection  of  thought  is  simple:  'I  now  have  in  my  Sabine 
farm  more  than  I  had  dared  to  hope  for,  and  my  only  desire  is  that  my 
present  happiness  may  continue  without  change.  No  better  subject 
than  this  could  offer  itself  to  my  humble  Muse,  as  I  begin  the  day  here. 
For  at  Rome  the  day  begins  quite  differently,  with  one  engagement 
after  another,  and  even  though  a  visjt  to  Maecenas  may  be  one  of  them, 

ft) 


4,  6]  HORATI 

yet  the  pleasure  is  half  spoiled  by  the  requests  of  my  acquaintances 
that  I  should  use  my  influence  with  Maecenas  on  their  behalf.  They 
do  not  understand  that  my  friendship  with  him  has  nothing  to  do  with 
public  affairs ;  in  fact,  we  never  speak  of  such  things,  and  I  am  glad  to 
escape  from  it  all  and  get  back  into  the  country,  and  to  hear  the  simple 
talk  of  my  good  neighbors,  like  Cervius'  story  of  the  Town  Mouse  and 
the  Country  Mouse.' 

This  satire  is  a  partial  return  to  the  forms  used  in  the  First  Book. 
The  main  body  of  the  discourse  (vss.  77-117)  is,  it  is  true,  formally 
separated  from  the  rest  and  put  into  the  mouth  of  another  speaker ;  in 
so  far  Horace  uses  the  newer  form  with  which  he  had  been  experiment- 
ing in  Sat.  2,  2 ;  2,  3.  The  main  body,  however,  is  not  enclosed  in  a 
framework  of  formal  dialogue,  but  is  introduced  by  an  expression  of 
personal  opinion  and  feeling,  like  that  with  which  Sat,  i,  6  concludes. 
It  was,  undoubtedly,  the  strength  of  personal  feeling  to  be  expressed 
that  led  Horace  to  return  to  his  earlier  method  of  treatment  instead  of 
using  the  form  of  Sat.  2,  2  and  2,  3,  which  is  better  suited  to  burlesque 
and  persiflage  than  to  serious  discussion. 

In  general  tone,  also,  this  satire  —  which  has  in  it  little  of  the  satirical 
element  —  is  a  return  to  the  manner  of  the  First  Book.  It  is  not,  how- 
ever, a  mere  turning  back.  The  intervening  years  had  left  their  health- 
ful mark  upon  Horace,  and  in  his  personal  attitude  he  shows  the  good 
effect  that  success  in  honest  endeavor  has  upon  all  men  of  large  nature  ; 
he  is  not  less  modest,  perhaps  he  is  more  modest  (vss.  40-58),  but  he 
no  longer  needs  to  explain  himself  or  to  defend  his  conduct.  The  sense 
of  easy  security  centered  about  his  closest  friend,  Maecenas,  and  about 
the  farm  which  was  the  gift  of  that  friend,  and  he  felt  the  impulse  to 
express  his  contentment.  It  is  to  be  remembered,  also,  that  Horace 
was,  as  Kiessling  reminds  us,  a  'country  boy.'  It  was  in  Rome  that 
he  had  done  his  work,  and  there  he  had  made  himself  a  place,  but  his 
profoundest  interest  was  not  in  the  life  of  clubs  and  dinners.  He  never 
ceased  to  feel  the  desire  for  the  quieter  life  of  the  country,  as  this  satire 
and  Epod.  2  sufficiently  testify. 

Meanwhile,  a  change  had  come  over  public  affairs,  not  unlike  the 
change  in  his  own  circumstances.  The  rule  of  Octavius  had  justified 
itself,  so  far  as  such  rule  can  ever  be  justified,  and  the  security  which 
Horace  had  received  from  Maecenas,  Rome  had  had  as  a  gift  from  Mae- 
cenas' chief.  Between  Octavius  and  Antony  no  sane  man  could  hesi- 
tate, and  beneath  the  personal  contentment  which  this  satire  expresses 
it  is  easy  to  hear  the  note  of  political  repose  and  contentment  which 
followed  the  decision  at  Actium.  This  satire  was  not  written  by  the 

220 


SERMONKS 


[2,  6,  6 


young  republican  who  fought  at  Philippi,  or  by  the  satirical  follower 
of  the  more  satirical  Lucilius,  but  by  a  contented  friend  and  citizen. 

Hoc  erat  in  votis :  modus  agri  non  ita  magnus, 
hortus  ubi  et  tecto  vicinus  iugis  aquae  fons 
et.  paulum  silvae  super  his  foret.     Auctius  atque 
di  melius  fecere.     Bene  est.     Nil  amplius  oro, 
5        Maia  nate,  nisi  ut  propria  haec  mihi  munera  faxis. 
Si  neque  maiorem  feci  ratione  mala  rein, 


1.  Hoc:  elaborated  in  the  rest 
of  the  sentence,  but  with  reference 
also  to  the  scene  that  lay  before 
him,  as  he   looked   out   from  his 
farm-house  in  the  morning. — in 
votis :  '  was  one  of  the  things  for 
which  I  made  my  vows.' 

2.  iugis :  in   form   either  gen. 
or  nom.,  but  the  balance  —  vicinus 
-fons,   iugis-aquae  —  requires     a 
genitive. 

3.  super  his :   the  ace.  is  more 
common,  but  the  abl.  is  freely  used 
by  Horace  (super  foco ,  Carm.   i, 
9,  5  ;  super  Pindo,  Carm.   I,    12, 
6).     His  usage  favors   the   local 
meaning  above  these  (not  in  addi- 
tion to  these  things},  i.e.  on   the 
overhanging  ridge  of  the  hill.  This 
little  wood-land  is  referred  to  also 
in  Carm.  3,  16,  29  f.,  silva  iugerum 
paucorum  and  in  Epist.  i,  14,  i, 
and  there  is  a  fuller  description  in 
Epist.  i,  1 6,  5  if.  —  Auctius :  more 
liberally. 

5.  Maia  nate:  cf.  Vergil's 
nate  dea.  Mercury,  as  the  god  of 
gain  (e.g.  Sat.  2,  3,  25),  was  the 
god  to  whom  the  prayer  for  am- 
plius would  be  addressed.  —  haec 


.  .  .  munera :  even  more  distinctly 
than  hoc,  vs.  I,  a  reference  to  the 
scene  before  him.  —  faxis:  the 
archaic  form  (fac-s-is,  a  sigmatic 
aorist  optative),  still  used  in  pray- 
ers and  curses. 

6  f.  Cf.  the  advice  of  the 
father  to  his  two  sons,  Sat.  2,  3, 
177  f.,  and  the  note  there.  The 
thought  here  is  the  same,  but  it  is 
expressed  somewhat  elliptically 
and  with  a  careful  contrast  of 
phrasing  which  covers  up  the 
thought.  The  real  emphasis  is 
upon  Horace's  contentment  with 
what  he  has  and  his  determination 
to  avoid  in  the  future,  as  he  has 
in  the  past,  either  of  the  extremes 
against  which  so  much  of  his 
preaching  is  directed,  either  the 
extreme  of  money-loving  or  the 
opposite  extreme  of  wastefulness. 
There  is  no  contrast  between 
ratione  mala  and  some  ratio  bona 
nor  between  vitio  culpave  and 
some  creditable  way  of  lessening 
one's  property,  e.g.  by  charity ; 
the  contrast  is  between  the  avarus 
with  his  usual  ratio  mala  and  the 
nepos  with  his  vitium  culpave. 


221 


,  6,  y] 


HORATI 


nec  sum  facturus  vitio  culpave  minorem ; 
si  veneror  stultus  nihil  horum :  '  O  si  angulus  ille 
proximus  accedat,  qui  nunc  denormat  agellum  ! 
O  si  urnam  argenti  fors  quae  mihi  monstret,  ut  illi, 
thesauro  invento  qui  mercennarius  agrum 
ilium  ipsum  mercatus  aravit,  dives  amico 
Hercule  ! '  si  quod  adest  gratum  iuvat,  hac  prece  te 
oro : 


The  sense  of  the  whole  is, '  I  am 
content  with  what  I  have.  I  have 
not  tried  (and  shall  not  try)  to 
increase  it  as  men  usually  do  and 
I  (have  not  been  tempted  and) 
shall  not  be  tempted  into  the 
common  fault  of  wastefulness.' 

8.  veneror :  a  rather  infrequent 
use,  with  cognate  ace.  or  ace.  of 
the  thing  asked  for,   without  the 
ace.  of  the  person.      Cf.    Carm. 
Saec.   49.      <  If  I   utter   no   such 
prayer  as  these.'  —  0  si :  this  ex- 
pression of  a  wish  is  explained  in 
the  grammars  and  is  familiar  to  us 
from  the  corresponding  English  ; 
'oh,  if  only  .  .  .' 

9.  accedat :  were  added  to  his 
farm. — denormat:      a     technical 
term  in  surveying;  expressive  of 
the  natural  and  common  desire  to 
have   a   farm  marked  by  straight 
border-lines. 

10.  urnam  argenti :  almost  ex- 
actly the  English  a  pot  of  money, 
in  its  original  sense. 

ii  f.  mercennarius:  this  would 
naturally  be  in  the  main  clause, 
but  is  put  into  the  relative  clause  in 
orderto  bring  it  into  closer  contrast 


with  mercatus.  The  whole  should 
be  very  freely  rendered  into  Eng- 
lish: 'the  man  who  found  a  buried 
treasure  and  with  it  bought  and 
cultivated  the  very  farm  on  which 
he  had  been  before  a  hired  laborer.' 
13.  Hercule  :  there  are  a  few 
references,  not  perfectly  clear,  to 
Hercules  as  the  god  of  hidden 
treasures,  but  the  explanation  of 
the  reference  to  him  here  is  to  be 
found  in  the  folk-story  that  Horace 
is  alluding  to,  which  is  given  by 
Porphyrio  :  '  traditur  fabula,  fuisse 
quendam  mercennarium  qui  sem- 
per Herculem  deprecatus  sit,  ut 
sibi  boni  aliquid  praestaret.  Quern 
Hercules  ad  Mercurium  duxit  et 
obsecratum  thesaurum  fecit 
ostendi.  Quo  effosso  ille  eundem 
agrum,  in  quo  operam  mercen- 
narium faciebat,  comparavit  et 
labori  solito  operam  dedit ;  sique 
probavit  Mercurius,  quod  de  eo 
praedixerat  Herculi,  nulla  re  ilium 
posse  beatum  vivere,  cum  in  eadem 
opera  post  inventionem  thesauri 
perseveravit.'  In  his  allusion  Hor- 
ace has  omitted  Mercury,  who  is  the 
real  god  ofgain,  and  has  dropped  the 


222 


SERMONES 


[2,  6,  20 


pingue  pecus  domino  facias  et  cetera  praeter 
ingenium,  utque  soles,  custos  mini  maximus  adsis  ! 

Ergo  ubi  me  in  mentis  et  in  arcem  ex  urbe  removi, 
quid  prius  illustrem  saturis  Musaque  pedestri  ? 
Nee  mala  me  ambitio  perdit  nee  plumbeus  Auster 
autumnusque  gravis,  Libitinae  quaestus  acerbae. 
Matutine  pater,  seu  lane  libentius  audis, 


moral. —  si  .  .  .  iuvat:  this  repeats 
the  substance  of  the  conditions  st'... 
feet,  si  veneror,  after  the  long  in- 
terruption, in  order  to  bring  them 
near  the  apodosis  oro. 

14  f.  pingue  pecus,  ingenium: 
a  pun  upon  the  literal  meaning  of 
pingais,fat,  and  the  derived  sense, 
heavy, v&  in  the  English  fat-witted. 
—  ut  soles :  other  references  to 
Mercury  as  his  guardian  divinity 
are  Car  in.  2,  7,  13  (at  Philippi)  ; 
2,  17,  29  ff. 

1 6  f.  in  mentis  :  Horace  says 
of  the  site  of  his  farm  continui 
mantes  (Epist.  i,  16,  5).  —  in  ar- 
cem ex  urbe :  the  play  upon  the 
similar  sound  of  the  words  is 
intentional  (cf.  Enn.  et  arce  et 
urbe  and  Livy's  famous  hostis  pro 
hospite)  and  may  be  rendered  by 
citadel  and  city.  —  prius  :  like  the 
English  rather,  i.e.  sooner,  in 
preference  to  my  farm.  —  Musa 
pedestri :  cf.  Sat.  I,  4,  39  f.,  ego  me 
illorum  dederitn  quibus  esse  poet  as 
excerpam  numero,  with  the  argu- 
ment which  follows.  The  ambition 
to  be  a  true  lyric  poet  lies  behind 
this  estimate  of  the  work  he  had 
already  done. 


18  f.  ambitio:  something  of 
the  original  meaning  (amb-ire, 
to  go  about,  canvassing  for  votes) 
is  still  left  in  this  word,  though 
here  the  reference  is  to  the  social 
struggle  (23  ff.),  rather  than  to 
the  political.  —  plumbeus  :  the 
sirocco,  Anster,  brings  a  peculiar 
sense  of  oppression,  like  a  weight. 
—  Libitinae  quaestus :  at  the  temple 
of  Venus  Libitina  funerals  were 
registered  and  fees  paid,  and  the 
things  necessary  for  a  funeral 
were  obtained  by  undertakers. 
A  season  of  ill-health,  like  the 
autumn  {Epist.  i,  7,  1-9),  was 
therefore  a  time  of  gain  (quaes- 
tus) for  the  goddess. 

20  ff.  As  the  references  to  the 
farm,  especially  vss.  16  f.,  are 
meant  to  indicate  the  place  where 
this  satire  was  written,  so  these 
lines  are  meant  to  indicate  the 
time  of  day,  the  early  morning. 
And  the  peaceful  beginning  of  the 
day  in  his  place  of  refuge  suggests 
to  Horace  both  the  invocation  to 
the  god  of  morning  and  of  all  be- 
ginnings and  also,  by  contrast,  the 
hurried  and  senseless  round  of 
duties  to  which  the  morning  sum- 


223 


2.  6,  21  * 


HORATI 


unde  homines  operum  priinos  vitaeque  labores 
instituunt  (sic  dis  placitum),  tu  carminis  esto 
principium.     Romae  sponsorem  me  rapis.     '  Heia, 
ne  prior  officio  quisquam  respondeat,  urge  ! ' 
Sive  Aquilo  radit  terras  seu  bruma  nivalem 
interiore  diem  gyro  trahit,  ire  necesse  est. 
Postmodo  quod  mi  obsit  clare  certumque  locuto, 


mons  him  at  Rome. — seu  lane: 
it  was  customary  in  ritual  to  ad- 
dress the  divinity  by  several  differ- 
ent names,  leaving  it  to  him  to 
select,  as  it  were,  the  most  accept- 
able (libentius)  ;  cf.  Cartn.  Saec. 
15  f.,  sive  lu  Lucina  probas  vocari 
(  =  libentius  audis)  seu  Genitalis. 
The  vocative  is  used  as  a  direct 
quotation  from  the  prayer. — audis  : 
art  called]  so  rexque  paterque 
aiidisti,  Epist .  I,  7,  37  f.,  and  often. 

—  unde :  =  a  guv,  '  with  an  invo- 
cation to  whom.'  —  In  the  rather 
heavy  phrases  —  operum  vitaeque 
labores,  instituuni,  sic  dis  placitum 

—  there  is  a  playful  formality,  as 
if  in  his  cheerful   morning  mood 
Horace  amused  himself  by  adopt- 
ing the  formal  ritualistic  style. 

23  ff .  These  half-humorous  lam- 
entations over  the  so-called  so- 
cial duties  which  waste  the  time 
in  Rome  are  quite  in  the  vein  of 
Sat.  I,  9.  He  is  struggling  be- 
tween a  sense  of  what  courtesy 
demands  and  an  impatient  desire 
to  be  rid  of  the  annoyances.  It  is 
annoying  to  have  to  go  to  court 
on  a  cold  day,  but  it  would  be 
still  more  annoying  to  feel  that 


he  had  failed  to  meet  the  claims 
of  friendship ;  it  is  highly  un- 
pleasant to  him  to  push  his  way 
through  the  crowd  and  give  just 
cause  for  remonstrance,  and  his 
consciousness  of  being  in  the 
wrong  only  makes  it  the  harder  to 
bear  the  impudent  remonstrance 
of  the  man  whom  he  has  jostled. 

23  f.  Romae  :  emphatic ;  'at 
Rome  how  differently  the  day  be- 
gins ! '  —  sponsorem :  '  to  be  secu- 
rity for  a  friend ' ;  to  be  asked  to 
perform  this  office  would  be  evi- 
dence that  one  was  regarded  as  an 
intimate  friend  and  would  often  be 
an  honor.  —  rapis:  addressed  to  the 
god ;  the  morning  brings  the  de- 
mand and  expresses  it  in  the  words 
which  follow,  heia  .  .  .  urge.  -.Vl 

25  f.  The  details  —  the  cold 
wind,  mid-winter,  snosv,  the  short 
day  —  picture  from  different  sides 
the  discomfort  of  going  out  of  the 
house.  —  interiore  .  .  .  gyro:  as 
the  sun  sinks  lower  in  approaching 
the  winter  solstice,  each  .daily 
circle  seems  to  be  within  that  of 
the  preceding  day. 

27.  Postmodo :  hereafter,  at 
some  future  time.  This  is  the 


224 


SERMONES 


[2,  6,  34 


luctandum  in  turba  et  facienda  iniuria  tardis. 

'Quid  tibi  vis,  insane,  et  quam  rem  agis  ? '  improbus 

urget 

30      iratis  precibus  ;  '  tu  pulses  omne  quod  obstat, 
ad  Maecenatem  memori  si  mente  recurras.' 
Hoc  iuvat  et  melli  est,  non  mentiar.     At  simul  atras 
ventum  est  Esquilias,  aliena  negotia  centum 
per  caput  et  circa  saliunt  latus.     *  Ante  secundam 


regular  meaning  of  postmodo  and 
ft  is  usually  joined  with  some  ex- 
pression of  futurity,  as  in  Carm. 
i,  28,  31  with  nocituram\  it  is  to 
be  taken  here  with  obsit,  not  with 
luctandum  in  the  sense  of  next, 
afterwards.  —  quod  obsit :  if  the 
friend  should  fail  to  meet  his  obli- 
gation. The  hazards  of  such 
sponsiones  are  often  alluded  to  in 
classical  literature,  as  the  dangers 
of  financial  endorsements  are  in 
modern  literature.  —  clare  certum- 
que .-  i.e.  having  had  the  disagree- 
able experience  of  being  told  to 
'speak  out,  so  that  the  Court  can 
hear.' 

28.  facienda:    it    seems    worse 
to  him  to  be  forced   to  be  rude 
than  it  would  be  to  suffer  rude- 
ness. 

29.  Quid  tibi  vis,  insane :  a  com- 
mon phr*ase  of  colloquial  speech. 
—  quam  rem  agis  :    scarcely    less 
frequent  in  Plautus  than  quid  agis? 
[The  text  of  this  line  is  taken  from 
Bentley's  convincing  note.]  — im- 
probus :    some    impudent  fellow ; 
though  the  remonstrance  is  justi- 
fied,  the   manner  of    it   and    the 

HOR.  SAT.  — 15  225 


reference  to  Maecenas  are  im- 
pertinent. 

30  f.  precibus :  curses,  like  di  te 
perduint,  which  in  form  are 
prayers.  This  sense  of  preces  is 
usually  marked  by  some  dis- 
tinguishing word  in  the  context 
(hosttitS)  Thy  est  ens),  as  here  by 
iratis. — tu:  as  the  speaker  turns 
and  recognizes  Horace,  he  goes  on 
from  general  curses  to  a  direct  and 
individual  taunt :  ;  oh,  it's  you, 
is  it  ?  you  would  of  course  be  in  a 
hurry,  on  your  way  to  see  your 
great  friend ! '  —  memori .  .  .  mente : 
i.e.  '  your  mind  is  so  full  of  him 
that  you  can't  remember  to  be 
decently  polite  to  the  rest  of  us.1 

32.  Hoc :  the  thought  of  his 
friendship  with  Maecenas.  —  non 
mentiar :  i.e.  '  I  acknowledge  it, 
though  it  is  inconsistent  with  my 
argument  that  Rome  isn't  a  pleas- 
ant place  to  live  in.'  —  At :  but  even 
this  pleasure  is  half-spoiled. — 
atras :  the  Esquiline,  where  the 
palace  and  gardens  of  Maecenas 
were,  had  been  the  site  of  a  large 
burial-place. 

34.  per  caput,  circa  latus:  the 


2,  6,  35] 


HORATI 


35 


40 


Roscius  orabat  sibi  adesses  ad  Puteal  eras.' 
'  De  re  com  muni  scribae  magna  atque  nova  te 
orabant  hodie  meminisses,  Quinte,  reverti.' 
'  Imprimat  his  cura  Maecenas  signa  tabellis.' 
Dixeris,  '  Experiar  : '  '  Si  vis,  potes,'  addit  et  instat. 
Septimus  octavo  proprior  iam  fugerit  annus, 


figures  are  slightly  different  from 
ours,  but  we  say  '  it  runs  through 
my  head,'  'it  springs  into  my 
mind '  —  Ante  secundam  :  before 
seven  o'clock;  Roman  business 
began  at  an  early  hour. 

35.  orabat:  like  the  epistolary 
imperfect.  —  adesses  :  on  banking 
or  court  business.  The  Puteal 
was  a  stone  curbing  around  a  spot 
in  the  Forum  where  lightning  had 
struck  ;  the  praetor's  tribunal  was 
not  far  from  it. 

36  f.  These  lines  afford  an  in- 
teresting little  glimpse  into  the 
professional  relations  of  Horace 
as  a  member  still  of  the  ordo  of 
minor  government  officials,  the 
scribae.  It  is,  in  effect,  a  notice 
of  a  meeting  of  the  organization 
('important  business1),  given 
orally  to  Horace,  who  is  ad- 
dressed familiarly  by  his  '  first ' 
name. — orabant  meminisses:  par- 
ataxis. —  reverti :  i.e.  '  to  come 
back  to  the  meeting-place  to  which 
he  used  to  come  when  he  was  an 
active  member  of  the  organization.' 

38.  Imprimat  .  .  .  cura :  para- 
taxis, like  c  lira  valeas,fac  sisfidelis. 
—  signa  :  i.e.  he  wished  Horace  to 
ask  Maecenas  to  set  his  seal  and 


signature  on  the  document.  This 
would  be  like  putting  'OK'  and 
initials  on  a  paper.  As  it  is  known 
that,  during  the  months  within 
which  the  composition  of  this  satire 
must  fall,  Maecenas  was  the  repre- 
sentative of  Octavius  in  Rome  and 
had  authority  to  use  his  seal,  the 
document  was  probably  one  that 
had  to  do  with  public  business 

39.  Dixeris :  as  if  putting  the 
reader  into  Horace's  position,  to 
make  the  situation  more  vivid. 

40  ff.  The  form  of  expression 
is  apparently  intended  to  suggest 
increasingly  definite  reminiscence : 
'it's  seven  years — almost  eight 
—  since  .  .  .'  —  iam  fugerit:  will 
soon  have  passed.  —  For  the  story 
of  the  introduction,  see  Sat.  I,  6, 
54  ff.  The  expression  here  is  al- 
most the  same  as  the  one  used 
there,  iiibes  esse  in  amicorum  nu- 
mero,  with  the  evident  intention 
of  recalling  that  satire,  as  the  next 
words  recall  the  journey  to  Brundi- 
sium,  Sat.  i,  5.  The  earlier  claims 
to  friendship  are  here  qualified,  to 
guard  against  the  interpretations 
which  had  been  put  upon  them. 
The  friendship  has  nothing  to  do 
with  public  affairs. 


226 


SERMONES 


O,  6,  53 


ex  quo  Maecenas  me  coepit  habere  suorum 
in  numero,  dumtaxat  ad  hoc,  quern  tollere  reda 
vellet  iter  faciens,  et  cui  concredere  nugas 
hoc  genus  :  '  Hora  quota  est  ? ' —  '  Thraex  est  Gallina 
Syro  par  ? '  — 

45      '  Matutina  parum  cautos  iam  frigora  mordent; '  — 
et  quae  rimosa  bene  deponuntur  in  aure. 
Per  totum  hoc  tempus  subiectior  in  diem  et  horam 
invidiae  noster.     Ludos  spectaverat  una, 
luserat  in  Campo  :  '  Fortunae  films  ! '  omnes. 

50      Frigidus  a  Rostris  manat  per  compita  rumor  : 

quicumque  obvius  est,  me  consulit :  '  O  bone  (nam  te 
scire,  deos  quoniam  propius  contingis,  oportet), 
numquid  de  Dacis  audisti  ? '     '  Nil  equidem.'     *  Vt  tu 


44  f .  Humorous  under-state- 
ments.  The  things  about  which 
Horace  and  Maecenas  talked  were, 
to  people  who  were  thinking  of 
political  influence,  no  more  im- 
portant than  remarks  about  ath- 
letics or  the  weather.  —  Thraex :  a 
particular  kind  of  gladiator  armed 
like  a  Thracian.  —  Gallina:  the 
Chicken,  the  name  given  to  him  in 
sporting  circles.  —  Syro  :  a  slave 
name,  here  borne  by  the  gladiator 
who  was  to  be  matched  against 
Gallina. 

46.  deponuntur :  used  of  plac- 
ing valuables  or  money  'on 
deposit'  in  safe  hands. — rimosa: 
i.e.  'Maecenas  tells  me  none  of  the 
state  secrets  '  like  those  mentioned 
below. 

48  ff.  noster :  our  friend,  as  if 
holding  himself  up  as  an  object  of 


sympathy.  This  use  is  colloquial 
and  the  following  illustrations  are 
told  in  colloquial  manner. —  spec- 
taverat: paratactic  with  the 
verb  of  omnes.  The  plupf.  tense 
makes  the  relation  of  the  clauses 
plainer :  '  he  had  been  to  the 
shows  with  Maecenas  ;  then  every- 
body said  .  .  .'  —  luserat:  Sat. 
I,  5,48;  i,  6,  126. 

50.  a  Rostris :  the  platform  in 
the  Forum  decorated  with  the 
beaks  of  ships  was  the  center  of 
public  discussion  and  announce- 
ment.—  per  compita:  i.e.  through 
the  city,  wherever  men  were  gath- 
ered ;  Sat.  2,  3,  25  f. 

52.  deos  :  a  slang  word  for  the 
prominent  men  in  the  state :  *  the 
bosses,'  'The  Big  Four.' 

53  f.  numquid  :  frequently  used 
in  colloquial  Latin,  as  here,  with- 


227 


2,  6,  54] 


HORATI 


semper  eris  derisor  ! '     'At  omnes  di  exagitent  me, 
55      si  quicquam.'     '  Quid,  militibus  promissa  Triquetra 
praedia  Caesar,  an  est  Itala  tellure  daturus  ? ' 
lurantem  me  scire  nihil  mirantur,  ut  unum 
scilicet  egregii  mortalem  altique  silenti. 

Perditur  haec  inter  misero  lux  non  sine  votis  : 
60      O  rus,  quando  ego  te  aspiciam  ?  quandoque  licebit 
nunc  veterum  libris,  nunc  somno  et  inertibus  horis 
ducere  sollicitae  iucunda  oblivia  vitae  ? 


out  the  expectation  of  a  negative 
answer;  'have you  heard  anything 
about  the  Dacians?'  Cf.  introd. 
to  this  satire  and  Carm.  3,  6,  13  ff., 
paene.  .  .  delevit  urban  Dacus. 
—  Vt  .  .  .  eris:  'how  determined 
you  are  to  prove  yourself  a  mere 
jester!'  —  At:  very  common  in 
such  asseverations.  For  the  gen- 
eral form  of  the  sentence  cf.  di  me 
perdant,  si  bibi,  Plaut.  M.  G. 

833- 

55  f .  The  allotment  of  land  to 
the  soldiers  of  Octavius  (Caesar) 
after  the  battle  of  Actium  was 
expected  and  there  was  great 
desire  among  those  who  were 
likely  to  be  affected  by  confisca- 
tions or  forced  sales  to  know 
where  the  lands  were  to  be  taken 
and  especially  whether  they  were 
to  be  in  Italy  or  perhaps  in 
Sicily. 

57!  unum:  the  one  man. 
This  is  not  very  different  from 
unns  with  the  superlative,  egregii 
altiqiie  supplying  the  standard  of 
comparison  ;  cf.  Sat.  2,  3.  24.  — 
scilicet :  ironical ;  he  was  credited 


with  great  power  of  keeping  a 
secret  which  was,  in  fact,  not 
known  to  him. 

59.  Perditur:  the  only  occur- 
rence of  a  passive  form  of  perdo 
in  classical  Latin,  the  forms  of 
pereo  being  elsewhere  used.  Aero 
glosses  it  with  consitmitur.  — 
misero :  it  is  hardly  necessary  to 
supply  wihi ;  the  thought  is  still 
somewhat  impersonal,  as  in  vs.  48. 
— votis  :  such  as  follow.  But  the 
wishes  pass  over  easily  and  imper- 
ceptibly into  a  description  of  an 
evening  in  the  country  and  so  to 
the  story  of  Cervius. 

61.  veterum  libris:  like  those 
Greek     books     which      he     had 
taken  with  him  for  his  Christmas 
vacation,  Sat.  2,  3,  1 1  f.     Horace 
did   not  care   much  for  the  early 
Latin  literature,  though  he  speaks 
with  respect  of  Ennius.  —  somno  : 
an  undisturbed  siesta. 

62.  ducere  .  .    .    oblivia :  drink 
in  forge/fulness;   so   souls   about 
to   be   born   again    longa    oblivia 
potanl  (Aen.  6,  715)  at  the  water 
of  Lethe. 


228 


SERMONES 


[a,  6,  70 


O  quando  faba  Pythagorae  cognata  simulque 
uncta  satis  pingui  ponentur  holuscula  lardo  ? 

65      O  noctes  cenaeque  deum  !  quibus  ipse  meique 
ante  larem  proprium  vescor  vernasque  procacis 
pasco  libatis  dapibus.     Prout  cuique  libido  est, 
siccat  inaequalis  calices  conviva,  solutus 
legibus  insanis,  seu  quis  capit  acria  f  ortis 

70     pocula,  seu  modicis  uvescit  laetius.     Ergo 


63  f.  The  simple  fare  of  the 
country. — Pythagorae  cognata: 

the  relative  of  Pythagoras ;  a  iittle 
fling  at  the  Pythagorean  philoso- 
phy. Pythagoras  forbade  the  eat- 
ing of  the  flesh  of  animals  because 
the  soul  of  a  human  being  might 
be  inhabiting  the  body  of  the 
animal.  He  also  forbade  the  eat- 
ing of  beans  ;  whatever  may  have 
been  the  reason  for  this  prohibition 
(and  many  different  explanations 
are  given),  it  was  attributed  to  the 
same  motive,  to  the  belief  that  the 
soul  of  a  man,  even  of  a  relative, 
might  be  dwelling  in  the  bean, 
and  the  doctrine  in  this  probably 
perverted  form  was  made  a  matter 
of  derision.  — uncta  satis:  the 
fat  bacon  took  the  place  of  olive 
oil  in  the  salad. 

65  ff.  This  is  an  ideal  picture 
of  the  cheerful  supper  with  its 
pleasant  details  (ipse,  the  host ; 
met,  the  intimate  friends ;  larem, 
the  sacred  hearth ;  proprium,  at 
home  ;  vernas,  the  old  family  ser- 
vants ;  procacis,  on  easy  terms 
with  the  master ;  libatis  dapibus, 
there  is  enough  for  all).  A  simi- 


lar scene  is  suggested,  though  with 
less  detail,  in  Cic.  Cat.  mat.  14, 46. 
—  libatis  dapibus  :  abl.  with  pasco; 
the  food  which  the  guests  have 
left  is  enough  for  the  slaves.  Cf. 
Sat.  I,  3,  80  f. 

67.  Prout  .  .  .  libido  :  'each 
guest,  according  to  his  own 
taste.  .  .  .' 

68  ff.  inaequalis :  defined  in 
the  following  clauses,  seu  .  .  .  seu. 
The  etiquette  of  a  formal  dinner 
{legibus  insanis)  obliged  the 
guests  to  drink  their  wine  and 
water  mixed  in  the  same  propor- 
tion, without  regard  to  the  taste  of 
the  individual.  —  capit :  holds,  car. 
ries.  —  acria :  strong.  —  fortis : 
strong-headed.  —  uvescit :  grows 
mellow.  These  are  all  words  of 
half-specialized  meaning,  in  use  as 
a  kind  of  slang  in  regard  to  drink- 
ing. There  is  a  considerable 
vocabulary  of  such  words  in 
English,  euphemistic  and  half- 
humorous.  • 

70.  Ergo  :  so  then,  in  con- 
sequence of  all  that  has  been 
said  of  the  character  of  the 
gathering. 


229 


2,  6,  71] 


HORATI 


sermo  oritur,  non  de  villis  domibusve  alienis, 
nee  male  necne  Lepos  saltet ;    sed  quod  magis  ad  nos 
pertinet  et  nescire  malum  est  agitamus  :  utrumne 
divitiis  homines  an  sint  virtute  beati; 

75      quidve  ad  amicitias,  usus  rectumne,  trahat  nos  ; 
et  quae  sit  natura  boni,  summumque  quid  eius. 

Cervius  haec  inter  vicinus  garrit  anilis 
ex  re  fabellas.     Si  quis  nam  laudat  Arelli 
sollicitas  ignarus  opes,  sic  incipit :  '  Olim 

80      rusticus  urbanum  murem  mus  paupere  fertur 


71  f .  non  de  villis  :  not  the  en- 
vious or  silly  gossip  that  one  may 
hear  at  more  ambitious  city  din- 
ners. —  Lepos :  Charm,  the 
Charmer,  a  nickname  of  some 
dancer  on  the  stage  ;  a  real  person, 
admired  by  Caesar,  the  Scholiast 
says. 

73  ff .  nescire  malum  est :  these 
fundamental  doctrines  of  ethical 
philosophy  cannot  be  ignored  with- 
out loss  and  discredit. — divitiis . . . 
an  virtute  :  i.e.  whether  happiness 
comes  from  within,  from  character, 
or  from  external  advantages,  like 
wealth.  —  usus  rectumne :  whether 
friendship  is  the  result  of  need  and 
of  a  sense  of  its  advantages  (ttsus) 
or  conies  from  the  attractive  power 
of  high  character.  This  is  one  of 
the  questions  on  which  Epicureans 
and  Stoics  held  opposite  views. 
It  is  discussed  by  Cicero  in  the  de 
Amicitia.  —  natura  boni :  the  na- 
ture and  essence  of  the  Good  and 
the  Highest  Good  —  summum 
bonum  — the  fundamental  question 


in  all  ancient  philosophy,  of  which 
Cicero  wrote  in  the  de  Finibits 
Bonorum  et  Malorum. 

77  ff.  garrit  anilis  .  .  .  fabel- 
las :  there  is  a  touch  of  modesty 
in  these  words  —  '  he  recounts 
some  little  story  that  he  had 
heard  from  some  old  woman '  — 
not  the  tone  of  contempt  that  is 
in  '  old-wives'  fables,'  but  enough 
to  disarm  criticism. — ex  re:  to 
the  point,  connected  with  the  talk, 
perhaps  with  the  question  divitiis 
an  virtnte.  —  Arelli :  GreenouglVs 
note  on  this  is  thoroughly  Hora- 
tian :  'so  that,  after  all,  human 
nature  was  too  much  for  them,  and 
they  did  talk  "de  villis  domibusve 
alienis.'"  —  ignarus:  not  knowing 
that  money  brings  anxiety  {solli- 
citas).—  Olim:  once  upon  a  time. 

80  ff.  The  old  story  of  the 
Town  Mouse  and  the  Country 
Mouse  is  retold  and  put  into  the 
mouth  of  a  Sabine  farmer  with  a 
purpose  —  like  so  much  of  Horace 
—  at  once  serious  and  humorous. 


230 


SERMONES 


[2,  6,  90 


accepisse  cavo,  veterem  vetus  hospes  amicum, 
asper  et  attentus  quaesitis,  ut  tamen  artum 
solveret  hospitiis  animum.     Quid  multa  ?  neque  ille 
sepositi  ciceris  nee  longae  invidit  avenae, 

85      aridum  et  ore  ferens  acinum  semesaque  lardi 
frusta  dedit,  cupiens  varia  fastidia  cena 
vincere  tangentis  male  singula  dente  superbo  ; 
cum  pater  ipse  domus  palea  porrectus  in  horna 
esset  ador  loliumque,  dapis  meliora  relinquens. 

90     Tandem  urbanus   ad  hunc :  *  Quid  te  iuvat,'    inquit, 
'  amice, 


It  enforces  in  general  terms  the 
lesson  of  Horace's  own  preference, 
and  it  is  at  the  same  time  an 
anilis  fabella,  at  which  one  smiles 
while  he  recognizes  its  underlying 
truth.  The  actors  are  Lilliputian, 
but  their  action  embodies  a  large 
truth.  This  double  purpose  is  re- 
flected in  the  style,  which  has  a 
kind  of  old-fashioned  formality. 
The  tone  is  carefully  set  in  the 
elaborate  structure  of  the  first  sen- 
tence ;  the  four  words  rusticus  .  .  . 
mus  balance  veterem  .  .  .  amicum 
— adj.-adj.,  noun-noun  ;  nom-acc., 
acc.-nom ;  rusticus-urbanum^mu- 
rem-mus.  This  is  the  manner  of 
the  serious  teller  of  an  old  story, 
conscious  of  his  moral  purpose 
and  not  quite  conscious  of  the 
incongruity  between  the  purpose 
and  the  vehicle  by  which  he  con- 
veys the  lesson. 

82.  asper,  attentus :  like  the 
ideal  Sabine  or  New  England 
farmer.  —  ut  tamen :  but  yet  such 


that  he  could  .  .  .  Ita  is  com- 
monly used  in  this  kind  of  sen- 
tence. 

83.  solveret :  to  balance  artum ; 
he  could  relax  his  closeness. —  Quid 
multa :  the  same  phrase  is  used  in 
Sat.  i,  6,  82  and  cf.  ne  te  morer, 
Sat.  i,  I,  14. 

84.  ciceris :   the  gen.  after  in- 
vidit is  a  Greek   construction.  — 
sepositi :  set  aside  as  too  good  for 
ordinary  days.     The  kinds  of  food 
—  peas,  oats,  seeds,  bits  of  bacon 
— are  specified  in  order  to  heighten 
the  contrast  between  the  solemn 
moral  tone  and   the   littleness  of 
the  actions  and  objects. 

86.  fastidia :  the  dainty  appe- 
tite. 

87.  male  :      with     tangentis ; 
scarcely  touching. 

88.  pater  . .  .  domus :  the  mas- 
ter of  the  house ;  an  intentionally 
fine  phrase. 

89.  esset  :    from    edo.  —  ador 
loliumque :    spelt  and  darnel,  sup- 


23* 


2,  6,  9i] 


HORATI 


praerupti  nemoris  patientem  vivere  dorso  ? 
Vis  tu  homines  urbemque  feris  praeponere  silvis  ? 
Carpe  viam,  mihi  crede,  comes,  terrestria  quando 
mortalis  animas  vivunt  sortita,  neque  ulla  est 

95      aut  magno  aut  parvo  leti  f  uga  :    quo,  bone,  circa, 
dum  licet,  in  rebus  iucundis  vive  beatus, 
vive  memor  quam  sis  aevi  brevis.'     Haec  ubi  dicta 
agrestem  pepulere,  domo  levis  exsilit ;  inde 
ambo  propositum  peragunt  iter,  urbis  aventes 

ioo    moenia  nocturni  subrepere.     lamque  tenebat 
nox  medium  caeli  spatium,  cum  ponit  uterque 
in  locuplete  dbmo  vestigia,  rubro  ubi  cocco 
tincta  super  lectos  canderet  vestis  eburnos, 


posedly  easy  for  a  mouse  to  col- 
lect and  therefore  standing  for 
ordinary  food. 

91  f .  These  lines  drop  back 
into  the  purely  human  attitude; 
to  a  mouse  praerupti,  nemoris, 
dorso  are  not  hardships  nor  homi- 
nes urbemque  advantages.  —  pati- 
entem: 'enduring  a  hard  life.'  — 
Vis  tui:  why  don't  you  .  .  .  ?  with 
hortatory  effect.  [Bentley's  note 
on  the  difference  between  vis  tu 
and  vin  tu  is  repeated  in  sub- 
stance by  most  editors,  with  a 
reference  to  Sat.  I,  9,  69  as  a  true 
interrogation.  But  vin  tu  .  .  . 
oppedere?  is  not  a  simple  question 
and  Bentley's  dictum,  though  fairly 
correct  for  vis  tu,  is  entirely  fanci- 
ful for  vin  tu,  many  examples  of 
which  in  Plaut.  and  Ter.  are  paral- 
lel to  his  vis  tu.  The  evidence  is 
collected  in  A.  J.  P.,  X,  4  (40), 
p.  415.] 


93  f .  mihi  crede :  a  parenthetic 
exhortation,  to  add  force  to  carpe 
viam.  —  terrestria  .  .  . :  the  Epi- 
curean doctrine,  put  into  fine 
phrases.  —  sortita  :  the  idea  of 
getting  by  lot  is  almost  lost  or  re- 
solved into  a  vague  sense  of  destiny. 

95.  aut  magno  aut  parvo :  as 
commonly  used,  this  means  '  even 
the  greatest  of  us  cannot  escape ' ; 
spoken  by  the  mouse,  the  meaning 
is  comically  reversed.  — :  quo  .  .  . 
circa:  an  unusual  tmesis. 

98.  pepulere:  struck, influenced 
his  decision.  —  levis  :  light-heart- 
edly. 

ioo  f.  In  the  epic  style ;  cf. 
Sat.  i,  5,  gf.  Cf.  also  Sat.  i,  5,  20 
for  iam  tenebat  .  .  .  cum. 

102 f.  cocco  .  .  .  eburnos:  the 
contrast  of  the  red  covering  with 
the  ivory  couch  is  used  also  in 
Catull.  64,  47  ff.  in  a  description 
of  a  splendidly  furnished  palace. 


232 


SERMONES 


[2,6,  ii j 


multaque  de  magna  superessent  fercula  cena, 
105    quae  procul  extructis  inerant  hesterna  canistris. 
Ergo,  ubi  purpurea  porrectum  in  veste  locavit 
agrestem,  veluti  succinctus  cursitat  hospes 
continuatque  dapes,  nee  non  verniliter  ipsis 
fungitur  officiis,  praelambens  omne  quod  affert. 
no    Ille  Cubans  gaudet  mutata  sorte  bonisque 

rebus  agit  laetum  convivam,  cum  subito  ingens 
valvarum  strepitus  lectis  excussit  utrumque. 
Currere  per  totum  pavidi  conclave,  magisque 
exanimes  trepidare,  simul  domus  alta  Molossis 
115    personuit  canibus.     Turn  rusticus  '  Hand  mihi  vita 


104  f.  fercula :  trays,  and  then 
the  courses  served  on  them.  — 
procul :  set  aside,  removed  from 
the  table  to  a  sideboard.  — 
hesterna  :  i.e.  of  the  evening 
before,  it  being  now  after  mid- 
night. 

io6ff.  All  the  appointments  of 
the  feast  are  in  contrast  to  the 
entertainment  in  the  country  (vss. 
83  ff.)  and  the  host  hurries  about 
like  a  slave  girt  up  (succintus)  for 
waiting  on  the  table.  —  continuat : 
i.e.  brings  on  the  courses  in  quick 
succession.  —  verniliter :  in  true 
servant-fashion  ;  defined  by  prae- 
lambens. He  took  stealthily  a  taste 
of  the  food  before  he  brought  it  to 
his  guest  —  again  in  contrast  with 
the  true  hospitality  of  the  country 
mouse,  vss.  88  f. 

1 1  o  ff .  bonis  rebus :  with  agit . . . 
convivam,  not  with  laetum  alone. 
—  agit :  he  plays  the  joyous  guest ; 
this  use  of  agere  is  technical 


of  actors,  e.g.  egit  in  the  Didas- 
caliae  to  the  plays  of  Terence. 
—  strepitus:  made  by  the  ser- 
vants coming  in  the  early  morn- 
ing to  put  the  dining-room  in 
order.  —  excussit :  a  very  graphic 
word. 

113  f.  Currere  :  the  name  which 
Lane  gives  to  this,  the  infinitive 
of  intimation,  is  here  very  apt, 
while  the  ordinary  name,  histori- 
cal infinitive,  is  particularly  inap- 
propriate. —  trepidare  :  often  used 
in  connection  with  cursare,  dis- 
cursu,  concursare,  as  here  with 
currere,  of  aimless  and  terrified 
running  about.  —  simul :  when.  — 
Molossis :  large  hounds  kept  as 
watch-dogs. 

iiSff.  Haud  .  .  .  est:  'I  do 
not  care  for  such  a  life  as  this.1 
For  this  slightly  weakened  collo- 
quial sense  of  opus  est  cf.  Sat.  i; 
9,  27  and  the  common  phrase 
nil  moror.  It  appears  to  be 


233 


a,  6,  116]  HORAT1 

est  opus  hac,'  ait,  'et  valeas;  me  silva  cavusque 
tutus  ab  insidiis  tenui  solabitur  ervo.' 

most   marked   in   negative   sentences.  —  solabitur :    i.e.   for    the  loss 
of  the  splendors  of  a  city  life. 


The  precise  date  of  this  satire  cannot  be  fixed.  The  allusion  in  vs. 
23  may  be  either  to  Sat.  2,  2  or  to  the  second  half  of  Sat.  2,  6,  and  vs. 
28,  Romae  rus  optas,  may  also  refer  to  Sat.  2,  6,  59  ff.  These  indica- 
tions point  in  a  general  way  to  a  late  date. 

The  form  is  the  characteristic  form  of  this  book,  which  is  used  also 
in  Satires  3,  4,  and  8.  The  main  body  of  the  satire  is  a  discourse 
addressed  to  Horace  himself,  which  is  introduced  and  then  brought  to 
a  close  by  bits  of  dialogue  suited  to  the  subject  and  to  speaker  and 
listener.  The  resemblance  to  the  third  satire  is  particularly  close : 
both  are  on  the  feast  of  the  Saturnalia,  in  both  Horace  is  interrupted 
by  the  intrusion  of  the  speaker  and  in  turn  interrupts  the  speaker  before 
the  main  discourse  is  reached  (3,  26  and  31 ;  7,  21  f.),  and  both  close 
with  an  outbreak  of  anger  on  Horace's  part. 

In  substance  also  this  satire  is  much  like  the  third.  That  is  a  dis- 
course upon  the  Stoic  Paradox  that  all  men  except  the  philosopher  are 
insane ;  this  has  for  its  text  the  other  Paradox  that  all  men  but  the 
philosopher  are  slaves,  OTI  yu-ovos  6  <ro<£os  eAev'flepos,  KCU  Tras  a<f>p(av 
SovAos.  This  is  the  subject  of  Cicero's  Parad.  V.  and  Horace  follows 
in  part  the  same  line  of  reasoning,  using  in  vss.  89  ff.  the  illustration 
of  the  lover  enslaved  by  a  woman  and  in  vss.  95  ff.  the  illustration  of 
the  infatuated  admirer  of  works  of  art,  almost  precisely  as  they  are 
used  by  Cicero.  As  in  the  third  satire  the  preacher  upon  the  insanity 
of  men  is  the  half-crazy  Damasippus,  so  here  the  person  who  discourses 
upon  the  slavery  of  men  is  Horace's  own  slave,  Davus,  and  as  Dama- 
sippus gets  his  wisdom  from  Stertinius  (and  Catius,  in  the  fourth  satire, 
from  an  unnamed  auctor),  so  in  this  satire,  with  a  clever  parody,  Davus 
has  learned  his  philosophy  from  the  door-keeper  of  the  philosopher 
Crispinus.  The  form  of  Stoic  discourse  is  less  distinctly  parodied  than 
in  Sat.  3,  perhaps  only  in  vs.  83,  and  it  is  evident  that  Horace  was  less 
inclined  to  burlesque  this  Paradox  than  he  had  been  to  flout  the  doc- 
trine that  all  men  are  insane.  The  truth  that  men  are  the  slaves  of 
their  follies  and  vices  is  so  familiar  to  us,  that  we  are,  in  fact,  obliged 

234 


SERMONES  [2,  7,  6 

to  remind  ourselves  that  slavery  was  an  ever-present  reality  in  the  Roman 
world,  in  order  to  understand  how  the  doctrine  could  have  been  called 
a  paradox  at  all.  This  satire  is,  therefore,  even  more  than  the  third, 
and  more,  indeed,  than  any  other  in  the  Second  Book,  a  direct  attack 
upon  the  follies  of  mankind.  But  the  sharpness  which  shows  itself  in 
some  of  the  satires  of  the  First  Book  is  entirely  avoided  by  the  humorous 
expedient  of  representing  the  satire  as  directed  against  Horace  himself, 
as  in  the  close  of  the  third.  That  Horace  is  not  drawing  a  picture  of 
himself,  however,  is  plain  from  such  passages  as  vs.  53,  vss.  89  ff.,  102 
ff.,  no  f. ;  the  faults  there  attacked  are  not  those  to  which  Horace  was 
prone.  But  there  is  enough  caricature  of  himself  (vss.  23  ff.,  29  ff.)  to 
add  a  pleasant  humor  to  the  whole.  It  must  be  said  also  that  there  is 
some  return  to  the  intentional  coarseness  of  Sat.  I,  2. 

Davus.  lamdudum  ausculto,  et  cupiens  tibi  dicere  servus 
pauca,  reformido.     Horat.  Davusne  ?     D.  Ita,  Davus, 

amicum 

mancipium  domino  et  frugi,  quod  sit  satis,  hoc  est, 
ut  vitale  putes.     H.  Age,  libertate  Decembri, 
5        quando  ita  maiores  voluerunt,  utere  ;  narra. 

D.  Pars  hominum  vitiis  gaudet  constanter  et  urget 

1.  ausculto  :   the  slave  has  lis-      to  goodness ;  '  honest,  or  at  least 
tened  at  the  door  to  see  whether      honest  enough.' 

Horace   has   a   caller  with   him;  4.  vitale:  cf.  Sat.  2,  i,  60 f.,  ut 

finding  that  his  master  is  alone,  sis  -vitalis  mettto]  he  is  good,  but 

he  ventures  to  speak.     The  hesi-  not  so  good  as  to  be  in  danger  of 

tation  and  humility  {servus)  of  the  dying  young.  —  Decembri:  at  the 

first  words  are  meant  to  contrast  feast  of  the  Saturnalia  slaves  were 

with  his  boldness  later.  given    a    considerable    liberty    of 

2.  Davusne :    Horace   is   preoc-  speech  and  action,  in  memory  of 
cupied   and  only  half  recognizes  the  Golden  Age  when  there  were 
the  slave's  voice.     The  name  is  a  no  masters  and  no  slaves, 
traditional  name  for  a  slave.  5.  narra:    speak;    this    is   the 

3.  frugi:    the    ordinary    adjec-  early  meaning,  not  tell,  narrate. 
tive  in  comedy  for  a  good  slave,  6-20.    '  Men   are    not   governed 
as  nequam  is  the  adjective  for  the  by   reason    even    in    their    vices, 
opposite.  —  quod  sit  satis :    a  hu-  Priscus  swings  from  one  extreme 
morous  modification  of  the  claim  to  the  other,  as  if  he  were  the  very 

235 


2.  7.  7] 


HORATI 


propositum ;  pars  multa  natat,  modo  recta  capessens, 
interdum  pravis  obnoxia.     Saepe  notatus 
cum  tribus  anellis,  modo  laeva  Priscus  inani, 
vixit  inaequalis,  clavum  ut  mutaret  in  horas, 
aedibus  ex  magnis  subito  se  conderet,  unde 
mundior  exiret  vix  libertinus  honeste  ; 
iam  moechus  Romae,  iam  mallet  doctus  Athenis 
vivere,  Vertumnis  quotquot  sunt  natus  iniquis. 
Scurra  Volanerius,  postquam  illi  iusta  cheragra 
contudit  articulos,  qui  pro  se  tolleret  atque 
mitteret  in  phimum  talos,  mercede  diurna 
conductum  pavit ;  quanto  constantior  isdem 
in  vitiis,  tanto  levius  miser  ac  prior  illo, 


god  of  change  himself,  while  Vola- 
nerius hangs  on  to  his  follies  with 
as  much  determination  as  if  they 
were  virtues.' 

7.  propositum :    cf.    iustum    et 
tenacem  propositi  virum,  Carm.  3, 
3,  I .  —  natat :  figurative  of  hesita- 
tion and  uncertainty  ;  float,  drift, 

8.  obnoxia :  submissive  to,  agree- 
ing with  pars. 

g.  tribus:  one  ring  was  usual, 
two  were  conspicuous,  three  would 
be  effeminate.  —  laeva  .  .  .  inani: 
i.e.  without  any  ring,  as  they  were 
worn  only  on  the  left  hand. 

10.  inaequalis:  cf.  nil  aequale 
homini  fiiit  illi,  in  the  description 
of  Tigellius  at  the  beginning  of 
Sat.  I,  3.  —  clavum:  he  changed 
within  an  hour  from  the  broad 
stripe  of  the  senator  to  the  narrow 
stripe  of  a  knight. 

12.  mundior:   more  respectable, 


a  freedman  of  self-respecting  hab- 
its. —  honeste :  decently.  But  the 
contrast  is  between  the  refine- 
ments of  his  palace  and  the  dirt 
and  squalor  of  a  hut  —  obsoleti  sor- 
dibus  tecti,  Carm.  2,  10,  6. 

13.  doctus  Athenis :  like  Cicero's 
friend,  T.  Pomponius  Atticus. 

14.  Vertumnis:  the  god  of  the 
changing  year  and  so  of  all  change. 
—  quotquot  sunt :  a  colloquialism, 
a  little  more  emphatic  than  omni- 
bus. —  natus  iniquis:  tf.Sat.  I,  5, 
97  f. ;  2,  3,  8. 

15.  Volanerius  :       unknown.  — 
iusta :    deserved  by  his  habits. 

17.  in  phimum  talos:  put  the 
dice   into    the   box.  —  diurna :    he 
was  too  poor  to  own  a  slave,  but 
hired  a  man  by  the  day. 

18.  pavit:  from  fiasco;  kept. 

19.  levius:  equal  to  minus',  cf. 
vs.  78. 


236 


SERMONES  [2,  7,  34 

20      qui  iam  contento,  iam  laxo  fune  laborat. 

H.  Non  dices  hodie  quorsum  haec  tam  putida  tendant, 
furcifer?     D.  Ad  te,  inquam.     H.  Quo  pacto,  pessime? 

D.  Laudas 

fortunam  et  mores  antiquae  plebis,  et  idem, 
si  quis  ad  ilia  deus  subito  te  agat,  usque  recuses, 

25      aut  quia  non  sends,  quod  clamas,  rectius  esse, 
aut  quia  non  firmus  rectum  defendis,  et  haeres 
nequiquam  caeno  cupiens  evellere  plantam. 
Romae  rus  optas;  absentem  rusticus  urbem 
tollis  ad  astra  levis.     Si  nusquam  es  forte  vocatus 

30      ad  cenam,  laudas  securum  olus,  ac,  velut  usquam 
vinctus  eas,  ita  te  felicem  dicis  amasque 
quod  nusquam  tibi  sit  potandum.     lusserit  ad  se 
Maecenas  serum  sub  lumina  prima  venire 
convivam  :  '  Nemon'  oleum  fert  ocius  ?     Ecquis 

20.  contento,  laxo :  the  sense  of  30!   securum  olus :   the 'dinner 
this  figure  is  plain,  but  the  precise  of  herbs  where  love  is.'  —  usquam : 
comparison  is  not  clear.  i.e.    '  as    if   you   never   went  out 

21.  hodie:  in  the  weakened  col-  anywhere   except   on   compulsion 
loquial  sense,  as  often  in  comedy  ;  (l/tattus).'1  —  amas:    the    nearest 
'  aren't    you   ever    going    to    tell  English  phrase  is  '  you  hug  your- 
me  .  .  .  ?'     There  is  no  reference  self;  cf.  Sat.  I,  2,  54. 

to  the  Saturnalia.  33.  serum :  the  invitation  comes 

24.  ilia:    the  old  ways.  —  deus  so  late   that  Horace  had  already 

subito:  as  in  Sat.  I,  i,  I5ff.,  a  god  himself  invited  some  unimportant 

is  represented  as  suddenly  fulfilling  guests,  whom  he  is  represented  as 

wishes  that  were  not  sincere.  abandoning  in  order  to  accept  the 

28.  absentem :    not  often  used,  invitation  of  Maecenas. 

a$  here,  of  .things.  34.  Nemon',  Ecquis  :    these  are 

29.  levis:  fickle.     This   is   the  colloquial  forms  of  question  used 
point  of  the  criticism  ;  the  accu-  in  Plautus  and  Terence  with  im- 
sation    of  affectation    (vs.  25)   is  perative   force;  '  won't  some  one 
aside   from    the   main   course    of  bring  the  oil  ?     Won't  some  one 
thought.  listen?' 

237 


2,  7,  35]  HORATI 

35      audit  ?  '  cum  magno  blateras  clamore  fugisque. 
Mulvius  et  scurrae,  tibi  non  referenda  precati, 
discedunt.     '  Etenim  fateor  me,'  dixerit  ille, 
'  duci  ventre  levem,  nasum  nidore  supinor, 
imbecillus,  iners,  si  quid  vis,  adde,  popino. 

40      Tu,  cum  sis  quod  ego  et  fortassis  nequior,  ultro 
insectere  velut  melior,  verbisque  decoris 
obvolvas  vitium  ? '     Quid,  si  me  stultior  ipso 
quingentis  empto  drachmis  deprenderis  ?     Aufer 
me  voltu  terrere ;  manum  stomachumque  teneto, 

45      dum  quae  Crispini  docuit  me  ianitor  edo. 

Te  coniunx  aliena  capit,  meretricula  Davum. 
Peccat  uter  nostrum  cruce  dignius  ?     Acris  ubi  me 
natura  intendit,  sub  clara  nuda  lucerna 
quaecumque  excepit  turgentis  verbera  caudae, 

50      clunibus  aut  agitavit  equum  lasciva  supinum, 
dimittet  neque  famosum  neque  sollicitum  ne 
ditior  aut  formae  melioris  meiat  eodem. 
Tu  cum  proiectis  insignibus,  anulo  equestri 

35.  fugis:  and  off  you  go.  point;  'you  are  proved   to  be  a 

36.  non  referenda:   things  that  worse  fool  than  I,  and  I  am  a  cheap 
I  must  not  repeat.  —  precati:  cf.  slave,  too.'  —  aufer:  like  noli;  cf. 
Sat.  2,  6,  30,  iratis  precibus.  mitte  sectary  Carm.  i,  38,  3. 

37.  ille :  Mulvius.  44.    manum :  as  if  Horace,  an- 
39.   si  quid  vis:   if  you  choose.      noyed  by  vs.  42  f.,  had  started  up 

—  popino :  a  haunter  of  cheap  tav-  to  strike  the  slave. 

erns.  45.   Crispini:  ;(  Sat.i,  i,  120, 

40  f.   Tu  .  .  .  insectere:  arepu-  note.     The  absurdity  of  quoting 

dialing  question  or  exclamation.  —  him  to  Horace  as  an  authority  is 

verbis   decoris :    with    fine  words  heightened   by  the  fact   that  the 

about  his  obligations  to  Maecenas,  wisdom     had    trickled    down    to 

when  in  fact  he  is,  Mulvius  implies,  Davus  through  the  philosopher's 

going  simply  to  get  a  good  dinner.  door-keeper. 

42 f.   me:  Davus.  —  quingentis:  53.    insignibus:    especially   the 

a  rather  low  price,  to  emphasize  the  tunic  with  the  narrow  purple  stripe. 

238 


SERMONES 


Romanoque  habitu,  prodis  ex  iudice  Dama 
55      turpis,  odoratum  caput  obscurante  lacerna, 

non  es  quod  simulas  ?     Metuens  induceris,  atque 
altercante  libidinibus  tremis  ossa  pavore. 
Quid  refert,  uri  virgis  ferroque  necari 
auctoratus  eas,  an  turpi  clausus  in  area, 
60      quo  te  demisit  peccati  conscia  erilis, 

contractum  genibus  tangas  caput  ?     Estne  marito 
matronae  peccantis  in  ambo  iusta  potestas  ? 
In  corruptorem  vel  iustior.     Ilia  tamen  se 
non  habitu  mutatve  loco  peccatve  superne, 
65      cum  te  formidet  mulier  neque  credat  amantt. 
Ibis  sub  furcam  prudens,  dominoque  furenti 
committes  rem  omnem  et  vitam  et  cum  corpora  famam. 
Evasti :  credo  metues  doctusque  cavebis : 
quaeres  quando  iterum  paveas,  iterumque  perire 


—  anulo  :  the  gold  ring  which  was 
one  of  the  signs  of  equestrian  rank. 

—  equestri :  there  is  no  other  pas- 
sage   in    Horace   which    suggests 
that  he  was  an  eques,  and  such  a 
supposition   is  quite   inconsistent 
with  the  tenor  of  Sat.  i,  6.     The 
reference  is  general  and.  ///  is  the 
imaginary  person  to  whom  Horace 
so   frequently   addresses    his    re- 
marks ;    the  Davus-Crispinus  ma- 
chinery is  for  the  moment  ignored. 

54  f.  prodis :  i.e.  '  when  you 
come  out,  you  are  no  longer  a  citi- 
zen of  good  standing  (index),  but 
a  miserable  slave.'  Cf.  Sat.  2,  5, 
1 8,  spur co  Damae.  —  lacerna:  a 
coarse  cloak  with  a  hood  for  con- 
cealing the  face. 


59.  auctoratus  :  bound  over,  as 
a  gladiator  was. 

60.  conscia :     cf.     Sat.     I,    2, 

ISO- 
ex  f.  Estne :  with  the  force  ot 
nonne,  as  often  in  comedy.  —  iusta 
potestas  :  this  leads  directly  toward 
the  point,  that  in  such  a  case  the 
man  is  no  more  than  a  slave. 

66.  sub  furcam :  a  common 
punishment  for  a  slave  ;  his  wrists 
were  bound  to  the  ends  of  a  forked 
beam,  which  rested  upon  his  neck. 
68  f .  Evasti :  i.e.  '  suppose  you 
have  got  off  once  safely.'  —  quae- 
res :  an  adversative  conjunction 
would  be  used,  if  the  thought  were 
fully  expressed  ;  '  on  the  contrary, 
you  will  seek.' 


239 


2,  7.  ?oj  HORATI 

70      possis,  o  totiens  servus !     Quae  belua  ruptis, 
cum  semel  effugit,  reddit  se  prava  catenis  ? 
'  Non  sum  moechus,'  ais.     Neque  ego,  hercule,  fur,  ubi 

vasa 

praetereo  sapiens  argentea.     Tolle  periclum, 
iam  vaga  prosiliet  frenis  natura  remotis. 

75      Tune  mihi  dominus,  rerum  imperils  hominumque 
tot  tantisque  minor,  quern  ter  vindicta  quaterque 
imposita  baud  umquam  misera  f ormidine  privet  ? 
Adde  super,  dictis  quod  non  levius  valeat :  nam, 
sive  vicarius  est  qui  servo  paret,  uti  mos 

80      vester  ait,  seu  conservus,  tibi  quid  sum  ego  ?     Nempe 
tu,  mihi  qui  imperitas,  alii  servis  miser,  atque 
duceris,  ut  nervis  alienis  mobile  lignum. 

Quisnam  igitur  liber?     Sapiens,  sibi  qui  imperiosus, 
quern  neque  pauperies,  neque  mors,  neque  vincula  ter- 
rent, 

70.   totiens    servus:    this,  ap-  may  be  himself  the   owner  of  a 

preaches  still  nearer  to  the  point  slave  and   they  are   then   simply 

of  the  argument.     Cf.  iusta  potes-  fellow-slaves,  like  you  and  me.1  — 

tas,  vs.  62.  vicarius:  a  slave  bought  or  hired 

75  f.   Tune   mihi :    repudiating  by  another  slave  to  do  his  work 

exclamation. — imperils :  abl.  after  for    him.  —  servis:     the    verb. — 

minor;  'subject  to  so  many  and  nervis:    puppets   were    made    of 

so  severe  commands.'  —  vindicta:  wood  and  jointed   so   that   their 

the  rod  which  the  lictor  laid  upon  arms  and  legs  could  be  moved  by 

(imposita)    the    slave    in    going  strings.  —  alienis:    controlled   by 

through  the  old  ceremony  of  man-  another  person, 

umission.  83.   Quisnam :   the    Stoic   form 

77.   privet :  deliver,  set  free.  of  argument,   by   brief  questions 

78-82.    'And  there   is  another  and  answers.  —  Sapiens :  the  Stoic 

argument,  not  less   forcible  than  philosopher. 

these.     For  the  fact  that  you  are  85.    responsare:  defy;   cf.  Sat. 

my  master  proves  nothing ;  accord-  2,  4,  18.     The  infin.  depends  upon 

ing  to  your  own  customs  a  slave  fortis. 

240 


SERMONES  0  ,  7,  101 

85      responsare  cupidinibus,  contemnere  honores 
fortis,  et  in  se  ipso  totus,  teres  atque  rotundus, 
externi  ne  quid  valeat  per  leve  morari, 
in  quern  manca  ruit  semper  fortuna.     Potesne 
ex  his  ut  proprium  quid  noscere?     Quinque  talenta 

yo      poscit  te  mulier,  vexat  foribusque  repulsum 
perfundit  gelida,  rursus  vocat :  eripe  turpi 
colla  iugo.     'Liber,  liber  sum,'  die  age!     Non  quis; 
urget  enim  dominus  mentem  non  lenis,  et  acris 
subiectat  lasso  stimulos,  versatque  negantum. 

95      Vel  cum  Pausiaca  torpes,  insane,  tabella, 

qui  peccas  minus  atque  ego,  cum  Fulvi  Rutubaeque 
aut  Pacideiani  contento  poplite  miror 
proelia  rubrica  picta  aut  carbone,  velut  si 
re  vera  pugnent,  feriant,  vitentque  moventes 

ioo    arma  viri  ?     Nequam  et  cessator  Davus  ;  at  ipse 
subtilis  veterum  iudex  et  callidus  audis. 

86  f.    in   se    ipso:     with    totus  is  traditional;    cf.  Ter.  Eun.  46- 

only ;  self-contained,  independent  49. 

of  all  else.     The  phrase  is  usually  94.    stimulos,  versat :  as  a  rider 

quoted  wrongly,  as  if  totus  by  itself  subdues    a     horse     by    wearying 

were  an  adjective  like  teres.  —  ex-  him. 

terni  .  .  .  morari :  '  so  that  nothing  95 .  Pausiaca :  a  picture  by  the 

foreign  may  be  able  to  rest  upon  famous  Greek  painter  Pausias   of 

(morari)      its     smooth      surface  the  fourth    century.  —  torpes :   cf. 

(leve)."1  stupet,Sat.  i,  4,  28,  of  unbounded 

88.  manca :  powerless.  admiration  for  works  of  art. 

89.  ex  his :  of  the  qualities  just  96.    Fulvi :  names  of  gladiators, 
mentioned.     The   answer  to   the  whose  performance  was  advertised 
question  is  given  in  the  following  by    pictures     in    black    and    red 
lines ;  he  cannot  be  sibi  imperi-  drawn  on  the  walls. 

osus    who    is    infatuated   with    a          ioo.   cessator:   i.e.   'you   blame 
woman  or  a  picture.  me  for  having  stopped  to  look  at 

91.   rursus  vocat:   cf.  Sat.  2,  3,      the   posters  when    you   had  sent 
260  ff.     The  picture  of  the  lover      me  on  an  errand.' 
HOR.  SAT.  —  16  241 


2,  7,  102]  HORATI 

Nil  ego,  si  ducor  libo  fumante  :  tibi  ingens 
virtus  atque  animus  cenis  responsat  opimis  ? 
Obsequium  ventris  mihi  perniciosius  est  cur  ? 

105    Tergo  plector  enim.     Qui  tu  impunitior  ilia, 
quae  parvo  sumi  nequeunt,  obsonia  captas  ? 
Nempe  inamarescunt  epulae  sine  fine  petitae, 
illusique  pedes  vitiosum  ferre  recusant 
corpus.     An  hie  peccat,  sub  noctem  qui  puer  uvam 

1 10    furtiva  mutat  strigili ;  qui  praedia  vendit, 

nil  servile,  gulae  parens,  habet?     Adde,  quod  idem 
non  horam  tecum  esse  potes,  non  otia  recte 
ponere,  teque  ipsum  vitas,  fugitivus  et  erro, 
iam  vino  quaerens,  iam  somno  fallere  curam  : 

115    frustra:    nam  comes  atra  premit  sequiturque  fugacem. 
H.    Vnde   mihi   lapidem  ?      D.    Quorsum    est   opus  ? 

H.   Vnde  sagittas  ? 

D.  Aut  insanit  homo,  aut  versus  facit.  H.  Ocius  hinc  te 
ni  rapis,  accedes  opera  agro  nona  Sabino  ! 

102.   Nil  ego:    sc.   sum. — libo:  satire,  seem  to  be  a  condensation 

pancake.  of  Lucr.  3,  1053-1070. 

105 f.  plector   enim:   *I   get   a  116.   lapidem:     of   Sat.    2,    3, 

thrashing,    to    be  sure,  but   that  128  f.,    where    a    master    throws 

proves    nothing,    for    you    suffer  stones  at   his  slaves.  —  sagittas : 

worse  penalties.'  these   unusual  weapons  of  attack 

107.  inamarescunt:    turn  sour.  are   named   in   order  to  give  an 

—  sine  fine :  with  petitae.  opening  for  the   final  remark  of 

no.   mutat:  'gets   a   bunch   of  Da vus,  -versus facit',  that  is,  unde 

grapes  in  exchange  for  a  scraper  sagittas  f  sounds  as  if  it  might  be 

that  he  has  stolen.1  taken  from  a  play. 

in.  nil  servile  .  .  .  habet:  has  118.    opera  .  .  .  nona:       'You 

nothing  of  the  slave  about  him.  —  shall   be   the  ninth    slave.'     The 

parens :  with  the  subject  of  vendit.  threat   to   send  a  slave  from  the 

111-115.  These  lines,  which  are  city   to   the   harder   work  of  the 

rather  more  serious  and  penetrat-  farm  is  frequent  in  comedy, 
ing   than  any   other    part  of  the 

242 


SERMONES 


8 

Nothing  in  this  satire  fixes  the  date  of  composition.  It  can  only 
be  said  that  it  was  written  between  35  and  30  B.C.,  and  that  in  subject 
and  general  treatment  it  is  like  the  other  satires  of  this  book. 

In  form  it  most  closely  resembles  Sat.  2,  4 ;  the  main  part  of  it  is 
an  account  of  certain  sayings  and  doings  related  by  another  person,  to 
Horace  at  his  request,  with  a  brief  introductory  dialogue.  The  sub- 
ject-matter connects  it  both  with  Sat.  2,  2,  as  a  contrast  to  simple 
living,  and  with  2,  4,  as  a  satire  in  a  different  vein  upon  the  serious- 
minded  epicure. 

The  main  body  of  it  is  a  description  of  a  dinner,  given  in  much 
detail.  The  names  of  the  guests  are  mentioned  and  their  places  at  the 
table  and  there  are  elaborate  descriptions  of  the  food  and  cookery. 
After  the  dinner  had  advanced  a  little  and  the  host  had  shown  a  dis- 
position to  brag  of  his  food  and  wines,  some  of  the  guests  proposed 
heavy  drinking.  The  host  turned  their  attention  again  to  the  food,  but 
while  he  was  describing  one  of  the  dishes,  a  canopy  over  the  table  fell 
and  covered  the  whole  company  with  dust.  The  host  at  this  mishap 
burst  into  tears  and  was  with  difficulty  induced  by  the  encouragements 
of  some  of  his  guests,  which  he  did  not  perceive  to  be  ironical,  to  pro- 
ceed with  the  feast.  When  he  did  go  on,  he  continued  to  talk  so  much 
about  the  food,  that  the  guests,  in  revenge,  declined  to  eat  it.  The 
satire  ends  abruptly,  without  the  concluding  dialogue  or  comment  which 
is  generally  found  in  the  satires  of  this  book. 

This  is  not  a  description  of  some  actual  dinner  at  the  house  of  an 
individual  who  might  be  identified.  All  attempts  to  connect  the  host, 
Nasidienus  Rufus,  with  some  person  known  to  us,  —  for  example,  with 
Salvidienus  Rufus,  —  fail  in  details  and  are  mistaken  in  their  purpose. 
It  is  quite  inconceivable  that  Horace  should  have  made  public  the 
story  of  such  a  dinner,  at  which  Maecenas  and  Varius  were  guests, 
and  should  have  represented  a  well-known  man  like  Fundanius  as 
guilty  of  the  extreme  discourtesy  of  ridiculing  the  host  whose  invita- 
tion he  had  accepted.  To  readers  of  Horace's  time  the  mere  fact  that 
the  story  is  told  by  Fundanius,  the  writer  of  humorous  plays,  would  at 
once  have  given  the  clew  to  the  burlesque  character  of  the  whole.  It 
is  no  more  to  be  taken  as  serious  narrative  than  the  legal  consultation 
in  Sat.  2,  I,  the  discourse  of  Ofellus  in  2,  2,  the  sermon  of  Damasippus 
in  2,  3,  or  in  fact  any  satire  of  this  book  except  the  earlier  half  of  the 
sixth. 


2,  8,  i]  HORATI 

But  though  the  setting  and  the  details  are  pure  burlesque,  there  is 
a  certain  amount  of  serious  purpose  underneath,  as  in  Sat.  2,  3,  for 
example,  where  the  Stoic  is  burlesqued,  but  the  follies  of  mankind  are 
also  satirized.  The  host  at  the  banquet,  who  is  here  ridiculed  on  his 
lighter  side,  is  a  type  of  the  same  man  who  ;s  attacked  with  savage 
directness  in  Epod.  4,  the  man  of  low  station  and  no  culture,  whose 
suddenly  acquired  wealth  has  not  changed  his  nature.  He  is  repre- 
sented here  as  an  aspiring  epicure,  proud  of  his  knowledge  of  the  art 
of  cookery  and  seeking  to  advance  his  acquaintance  with  Maecenas  by 
giving  him  a  particularly  fine  dinner.  But  the  ridicule  is  directed  quite 
as  much,  perhaps  even  more,  against  the  absurd  solemnities  of  the 
epicure.  There  are  passages  (vss.  6  ff.,  43  fF.,  especially  85  ff.)  which 
are  indistinguishable  in  tone  and  manner  from  parts  of  Sat.  2,  4,  and 
which  have  no  point  at  all  unless  we  understand  them  as  we  do  that 
satire,  —  as  ironical  parodies  of  the  precepts  of  fine  cookery. 

This  is  not  one  of  the  best  of  the  satires.  The  humor  is  not  always 
in  good  taste ;  there  is  too  close  an  approach  to  horse-play  and,  though 
Maecenas  and  the  literary  men  are  kept  in  the  background,  with  the 
evident  purpose  of  guarding  their  dignity,  the  rest  of-the  guests  are  not 
superior  in  good-breeding  to  the  host  whom  they  ridicule.  The  scene 
is,  with  some  differences,  not  unlike  the  supper  described  in  Sat.  i,  5, 
51  fF.  and,  in  general,  this  satire  has  many  of  the  characteristics,  both 
positive  and  negative,  of  Sat.  I,  5.  The  explanation  is  that  Horace  is 
here  also,  as  in  I,  5,  following  a  satire  of  Lucilius  (Charis.  in  Gr.  Lat. 
p.  loo  K.,  Lucilius  .  .  .  deridens  rusticam  cenam ;  the  fragments  are 
in  Marx.  193  fF.),  doubtless  improving  upon  the  form,  but  hampered  by 
his  model.  The  grave  and  sustained  irony  of  Sat.  2,  4,  when  no  Lu- 
cilian  influence  is  discernible,  is  much  superior  to  this. 

Horatius.  Vt  Nasidieni  iuvit  te  cena  beati  ? 
Nam  mihi  quaerenti  convivam  dictus  heri  illic 

i.  Vt  .  .  .  iuvit    te  :     change  tion,  intentionally  used  in  the  first 

the   construction   in    translating;  line. — beati:    rich,    the    million- 

4  how   did   you  enjoy  yourself  at  aire,  with  a  touch  of  irony. 

the  dinner  of ? '  —  Nasidieni :  2.   quaerenti  convivam  :  sc.  te  ; 

in  four  syllables,  the  second  *  be-  '  when  I  tried  to  get  you  to  come 

ing  consonantal  and  lengthening  and  dine  with  me.'  —  dictus:  sc. 

the    preceding    syllable ;    this    is  es ;  the  omission  is  not  at  all  in- 

probably    a    plebeian    pronuncia-  frequent  in  colloquial  Latin,  as  in 

244 


SERMONES 


[2,  8,  8 


de  medio  potare  die.     Fundanius.  Sic,  ut  mihi  num- 

quam 

in  vita  fuerit  melius.     Hor,   Da,  si  grave  non  est, 
quae  prima  iratura  ventrem  placaverit  esca. 
Fund.  In  primis  Lucanus  aper  leni  fuit  Austro 
captus,  ut  aiebat  cenae  pater ;  acria  circum 
rapula,  lactucae,  radices,  qualia  lassum 


comedy.  —  heri :  the  pronuncia- 
tion of  the  last  letter  was  so 
indistinct  that  the  word  was  writ- 
ten sometimes  fieri,  sometimes 
here. 

3.  de  medio  die  :  the  dinner  be- 
gan before  the  usual  hour,  which 
was  three  o'clock  or  later,  as  it 
was  to  be  a  formal  affair.     The 
Roman    custom    in    this    respect 
was  the  opposite  of  ours. 

4.  fuerit  melius  :  mihi  bene  est, 
'I  am  enjoying  myself,'  is  a  com- 
mon colloquialism ;  cf.  Sat.  2,  2, 
120. 

5.  iratum  ventrem :  cf.  latran- 
tem  stomachum,  Sat.  2,  2,  18.   The 
question  is  ironical,  as  if  the  object 
of  a  formal  dinner  was  to  satisfy 
a  natural  hunger. 

6-9.  Our  knowledge  of  Roman 
dinner  customs  is  imperfect,  the 
fashions  changed  from  time  to 
time,  and  this  description  is  meant 
to  be  only  a  series  of  allusions. 
It  is  therefore  quite  impossible  to 
arrange  the  menu  or  even  to  de- 
cide whether  this  course  consti- 
tuted \hegustatio  (promulsis)  ;  the 
relishes  served  with  the  boar  would 
indicate  that  it  did ;  the  fact  that 


no  drink  (mulsum)  is  mentioned 
would,  however,  be  a  strange 
omission. 

6  f.   leni  .  .  .  Austro  captus :  not 
predicate  with  fuit ;    '  one  of  the 
first  things  was  a  Lucanian  boar, 
killed,  as  the  host  said,  when  a 
mild  southerly  wind  was  blowing.' 
The  Lucanian  boar  was  especially 
prized  and  the  state  of  the  weather 
at  the  time  the  animal  was  killed 
was  supposed  to  affect  the  flavor 
of  the  meat ;  cf.  Sat.  2,  2,  32  ff. 
and     the     modern     superstitions 
about  the  'dark  of  the  moon.'  — 
cenae  pater :  he  is  called  also  erus 
(vss.  16,  43),  ipse  (23),  parochus 
(36),  and  convivator  (73),  as  well 
as    Nasidienus    (i,   75,   84)    and 
Rufus  (58). 

7  f.   acria:      introducing     the 
whole  list  and  repeated  in  qualia 
.   .    .  stomachum.      The    relishes 
are  only  partly  in  use  now  nor  is 
the  precise  identification  of  them 
at  all   important :    '  rape,   lettuce, 
radishes,   skirret,  fish-pickle,  and 
burnt    tartar    from    Coan    wine.' 
These  were  arranged  around  (cir- 
cum)  the   boar,   perhaps  on  the 
same  platter. 


245 


2,  8,  9] 


HORATI 


pervellunt  stomachum,  siser,  allec,  faecula  Coa. 
His  ubi  sublatis  puer  alte  cinctus  acernam 
gausape  purpureo  mensam  pertersit  et  alter 
sublegit  quodcumque  iaceret  inutile  quodque 
posset  cenantis  offendere,  ut  Attica  virgo 
cum  sacris  Cereris  procedit  fuscus  Hydaspes 
Caecuba  vina  ferens,  Alcon  Chium  maris  expers. 


10.  ubi:  introduces  pertersit 
et  sublegit ;  '  when  these  had  been 
removed  and  after  a  slave  had 
wiped  .  .  .'  —  alte  cinctus :  the 
same  as  s^^cc^nctus,  2,  6,  107 ;  the 
slave  was  in  the  proper  dress  for 
waiting  at  the  table.  —  acernam: 
maple,  one  of  the  more  valuable 
woods  for  dining-tables ;  as  one 
might  speak  of  *  the  mahogany 
table,1  not  as  a  rarity,  but  as  the 
'proper  thing.' 

n.  gausape  purpureo:  abl. ; 
this  was  a  bit  of  unnecessary  dis- 
play. Lucilius,  in  a  corresponding 
passage  (Marx,  568),  has  pur- 
pureo tersit  tune  latas  gausape 
mensas. 

12.  sublegit:  this  is  mentioned 
merely  as  a  part  of  the  ordinary 
table  service  in  order  to  prepare 
for  the  formality  of  the  next  event ; 
'a  slave  in  proper  dress  wiped  the 
table  —  with  a  purple  cloth,  to  be 
sure  —  and  the  crumbs  were  gath- 
ered up,  when  in  came  .  .  .' 

13  f.  ut:  with  virgo;  'like  a 
girl  at  Athens  in  a  religious  pro- 
cession.1 The  Kavr]<j>6pos  (cf. 
Sat.  1,3,  10  f.)  carried  the  sacred 
symbols  in  a  basket  on  her  head 


and  walked  with  slow  step  and 
upright  carriage.  —  Hydaspes :  an 
Eastern  slave-boy,  named  after 
the  river  of  his  native  land. 

15  f.  Alcon:  another  slave. 
The  fact  that  his  name  is  given 
would  seem  to  indicate  that  there 
was  some  point  in  it,  as  in  Hydas- 
pes, but  we  do  not  know  what  it 
was.  —  Caecuba :  one  of  the  best 
of  the  Italian  wines,  as  were  also 
the  Alban,  in  the  time  of  Horace, 
and  Falernian.  The  Chian  was  a 
fine  Greek  wine,  with  which  sea- 
water  was  sometimes  sparingly 
mixed  to  give  it  a  tang.  Horace 
frequently  mentions  these  and 
other  special  kinds  of  wine,  con- 
trasting them  with  the  ordinary 
Sabine  wine,  as  we  might  contrast 
special  French  or  German  wines 
with  Californian  claret,  but  he  does 
not  make  sharp  distinctions  be- 
tween them.  The  preference  for 
Caecuban  came  later,  when  the 
vineyards  were  dying  out  and  the 
wine  was  becoming  rare.  The 
many  attempts  of  commentators 
to  find  hidden  meanings  in  these 
lines  are  all  misleading.  The 
slaves  brought  in  the  best  of  wine, 


246 


SERMONES 


[2,  8,  20 


20 


Hie  erus : '  Albanum,  Maecenas,  sive  Falernum 
te  magis  appositis  delectat,  habemus  utrumque.' 
Hor.  Divitias  miseras !     Sed  quis  cenantibus  una, 
Fundani,  pulchre  f  uerit  tibi,  nosse  laboro. 
Fund.  Summus  ego,  et  prope  me  Viscus  Thurinus,  et 
infra, 


with  a  trifle  more  ceremony  than 
was  necessary,  and  the  host,  also 
with  unnecessary  display,  said  '  if 
you  prefer,  I  can  give  you  some 
Alban  or  Falernian.'  The  wines 
are  all  right,  —  the  very  best, — 
but  why  such  a  fuss  about  them  ? 
—  maris  expers:  i.e.  not  mixed 
with  sea- water.  This  was  a  proper, 
if  less  usual,  way  of  serving  Chian 
wine,,  but  it  might  have  been  left 
to  the  guests  to  discover  it,  instead 
of  making  a  formal  announcement, 
as  it  is  implied  that  the  slave  did. 
1 8  f.  Divitias  miseras :  '  oh,  the 
curse  of  being  so  rich ! '  or  perhaps 
like  saying,  '  oh,  poor  millionaire ! ' 
This  exclamation  interprets  to  us 
the  point  of  the  preceding  lines. 
The  unfortunate  host  thinks  that 
the  wines  and  cookery  which  his 
money  can  buy  are  the  things  that 
make  a  successful  dinner.  But 
Horace  goes  to  the  root  of  the  mat- 
ter by  asking  who  the  other  guests 
were.  —  quis :  quibus^  interroga- 
tive. The  English  structure  would 
make  cenantibus  the  leading  verb : 
'but  who  were  dining  there  with 
you,  that  you  should  have  such  a 
good  time  ?  That's  what  I  want 
to  know.' 


20  ft.  The  guests  reclined  on 
couches  on  three  sides  of  the 
table.  The  arrangement  can  be 
understood  from  the  following 
diagram :  — 


i.  Fundanius;  2.  Viscus;  3.  Varius; 
4.  Servilius  Balatro;  5.  Vibidius;  6.  Mae- 
cenas; 7.  Nomentanus;  8.  Nasidienus  Ru- 
fus;  9.  Porcius. 

20.  Summus :  the  three  places 
numbered  i,  4,  and  7  were  the 
summi  loci,  in  position,  not  in 
honor,  and  infra  and  super  refer 
to  this  designation.  — Viscus  :  one 
of  the  brothers  mentioned  in  Sat. 
i,  10,  83,  here  distinguished  by 
the  addition  of  Thurinus. 


247 


2,  8,  21] 


HORATI 


si  memini,  Varius ;  cum  Servilio  Balatrone 
Vibidius,  quas  Maecenas  adduxerat  umbras  ; 
Nomentanus  erat  super  ipsum,  Porcius  infra, 
ridiculus  totas  simul  absorbere  placentas  ; 
25      Nomentanus  ad  hoc,  qui,  si  quid  forte  lateret, 
indice  monstraret  digito  :  nam  cetera  turba, 
nos,  inquam,  cenamus  avis,  conchylia,  piscis, 
longe  dissimilem  noto  celantia  sucum, 
ut  vel  continue  patuit,  cum  passeris  atque 


21.  Varius:  cf.  Sat.  i,  5,  40; 
I,    10,    44.  and    often;     one    of 
Horace's     and     Vergil's     closest 
friends.     There  is  probably  some 
little  joke  in  si  memini. 

22.  Maecenas :    he   was  in  the 
place   of  honor,  the   locus  consu- 
lar is,  numbered  6  in  the  diagram. 
—  umbras  :     persons    whom    the 
chief  guest  might  bring  with  him, 
without    special    invitation     from 
the  host.     So  Horace,  inviting  a 
friend,  says  (Epist.  i,  5,  28),  locus 
est  et  pluribus  umbris.     Men  who 
came  in  such  a  way  would  ordina- 
rily be  of  lower  rank,  and  Servilius 
and  Vibidius  were  evidently  scur- 
rae  (see  note  on  Sat.  2,  3,  229), 
who    were    expected    to    furnish 
entertainment  for  the  others.     In 
fact  all  the  conversation  reported 
(vss.  34,  65  ff.,  80  ff.)  comes  from 
them   or  from  the  host  and  his 
own  scurrae. 

23.  Nomentanus,  Porcius :  two 
parasites   of  the   host.      Nomen- 
tanus is  not  the  spendthrift  men- 
tioned in  other  satires  (i,  i,  102; 
i,  8,  ii  ;  2,  i,  22;  2,  3,  175,  224). 


The  name  Porcius  is  coined  from 
par cus ;  cf.  the  next  verse.  —  super 
ipsum :  i.e.  Nasidienus  had  given 
the  host's  place  (no.  7)  to  his 
more  fluent  parasite,  for  the  reason 
given  in  vs.  25. 

24.  totas  simul :  all  at  once. 
Various  kinds  of  buffoonery  like 
this  are  alluded  to  in  Plautus  as 
practiced  by  parasites. 

25  f.  ad  hoc:  also  in  Sat.  2,  i, 
36,  to  introduce  a  clause  of  pui- 
pose.  —  lateret :  pass  unnoticed  by 
the  guests.  —  indice  digito :  i.e. 
he  should  not  only  speak  of  it, 
but  also  point  to  it.  —  cetera  turba : 
the  instruction  was  obviously  given 
to  Maecenas  and  the  others  were  a 
mere  turba,  left  for  the  most  part 
uninstructed  as  to  the  nature  of 
the  food  before  them. 

27.  inquam:  not  strengthen- 
ing the  previous  statement,  but 
explaining  it ;  we,  f  mean. 

28  ff.  celantia :  neut.,  agreeing 
with  the  three  nouns  of  different 
gender.  —  noto :  sc.  suco ;  dat. 
after  dissimilem.  —  vel :  in  fact. 
—  passeris :  flat-fish ;  the  name 


248 


SERMONES 


[2,  8,  36 


30     ingustata  mihi  porrexerat  ilia  rhombi. 

Post  hoc  me  docuit  melimela  rubere  minorem 
ad  lunam  delecta.     Quid  hoc  intersit,  ab  ipso 
audieris  melius.     Turn  Vibidius  Balatroni, 
'  Nos  nisi  damnose  bibimus,  moriemur  inulti ; 

35      et  calices  poscit  maiores.     Vertere  pallor 

turn  parochi  faciem,  nil  sic  metuentis  ut  acris 


of  a  bird  transferred  to  a  fish,  as 
in  'sea-robin.1  —  ingustata:  ap- 
parently found  only  here;  it  can 
mean  either  itntasted,  i.e.  '  which 
I  did  not  taste,1  or  untasted  hith- 
erto, '  of  such  a  flavor  as  I  had 
never  known  before.1  —  prorrex- 
erat :  the  subject  is  Nasidienus. 
—  ilia :  the  roe.  —  The  sense  is  : 
'Nomentanus  explained  the  excel- 
lence of  the  dishes  to  Maecenas 
only,  for  the  rest  of  us  were  of  no 
importance  (turbo)  and  ate  all 
sorts  of  things  without  knowing 
what  was  fish,  flesh,  or  fowl ;  for 
the  ordinary  taste  was  covered  up 
by  some  extraordinary  sauce.  I 
in  fact  made  a  mistake  at  the  out- 
set by  failing  to  recognize  some 
fish-roe  which  my  host  had  passed 
to  me  and  which  had  a  taste  that 
I  had  never  known  before.1 

31.  melimela  rubere :  'that  the 
honey-apples  were  red  because 
they  were  picked  .  .  .?  —  mino- 
rem :  the  waning  moon.  This 
verse  has  nothing  to  do  with  the 
preceding,  but  is  a  bit  of  esoteric 
wisdom  which  the  epicure  oblig- 
ingly imparted  (docnif)  to  his 
ignorant  guest.  Cf.  vs.  6  f.  This 


is  exactly  in  the  ironical  manner 
of  Sat,  2,  4. 

32  f .  ab  ipso :  i.e.  '  you  will 
have  to  ask  him ;  /  don't  pre- 
tend to  know.1  —  audieris:  the 
potential  with  a  comparative,  as 
often. 

34.  damnose:  i.e.  to  the  ruin 
of  the  host;  'drink  him  bank- 
rupt.1—  moriemur  inulti:  this  is 
the  cry  of  the  epic  hero  facing 
death ;  so  Hector,  //.  22,  304  f., 
/XT)  (JLO.V  cunrovoY  ye  KO.L  d/<Xeia»s 
aTroAotju/tyv,  |  dAAa  /jie'ya  pe^aori,  and 
Aeneas,  Aen.  2.  670,  numquam 
omnes  hodte  moriemur  inulti. 

35  ff.  Vertere  pallor  .  .  .  fac- 
iem :  i.e.  '  he  turned  pale,1  but  the 
expression  is  somewhat  odd ;  not 
the  same  as  Efiod.  4,  9  ff.  —  paro- 
chi; our  steward,  our  caterer ;  with 
some  contempt.  Cf.  for  the  use 
of  the  word  in  its  ordinary  sense, 
Sat.  i,  5,46. — vel  quod  .  .  .  vel 
quod  :  there  is  no  reason  whatever 
for  looking  behind  these  perfectly 
good  explanations  to  discover  some 
discreditable  motive,  like  stingi- 
ness. Vss.  41  and  81  are  per- 
fectly consistent  with  these  lines 
taken  in  their  simple  sense.  - 


249 


a.  8.  37] 


HORATI 


potores,  vel  quod  male  dicunt  liberius  vel 
fervida  quod  subtile  exsurdant  vina  palatum. 
Invertunt  Allifanis  vinaria  tota 

40     Vibidius  Balatroque,  secutis  omnibus ;  imi 
convivae  lecti  nihilum  nocuere  lagenis. 

Affertur  squillas  inter  murena  natantis 
in  patina  porrecta.   Sub  hoc  erus '  Haec  gravida,'  inquit, 
'  capta  est,  deterior  post  partum  carne  futura. 

45      His  mixtum  ius  est:  oleo  quod  prima  Venafri 
pressit  cella ;  garo  de  sucis  piscis  Hiberi ; 
vino  quinquenni,  verum  citra  mare  nato, 
dum  coquitur  —  cocto  Chium  sic  convenit,  ut  non 
hoc  magis  ullum  aliud;  — pipere  albo,  non  sine  aceto, 


male  dicunt :  as  inSaf.  I,  4,  86  ff. 

—  exsurdant:    the  real  epicure  is 
especially   anxious   that   his    fine 
cookery   should   be  properly  ap- 
preciated. 

39.  Allifanis :  large  cups, 
named  from  the  town  of  Allifae. 

—  vinaria :  jugs :   we  should  say 
'  bottles,'  '  decanters.' 

40  f .  imi  .  .  .  lecti :  the  three 
couches  were  called  summits  (nos. 
I,  2,  3  on  the  diagram),  medius 
(nos.  4,  5,  6),  and  imus.  The 
two  parasites  of  the  host  of  course 
followed  his  wish  and  drank  little. 

—  nihilum  nocuere :  the  same  idea 
is  in  the   English   'to  spare  the 
bottle.' 

42  f.  The  Roman  cooks  sought 
to  produce  odd  or  realistic  effects 
in  the  arrangement  of  the  food  on 
the  platter.  —  Sub  hoc  :  at  this,  as 
this  appeared. 


44.  futura:  for  it  -would  be. 
This  piece  of  epicure's  wisdom  is 
accepted  by  commentators  as 
sound  and  a  matter  of  common 
knowledge;  it  may  be  so. 

45  ff.  His:  'the  following  in- 
gredients.' The  other  ablatives 

—  oleo,  garo,   vino,  pipere  —  are 
appositives  of  his.  —  Venafri :  the 
olives    of    Venafrum    were    con- 
sidered especially  good   and   the 
oil  which  came  from  the  first  press- 
ing was  better  than  that  extracted 
later.  —  garo:    something  like  ca- 
viare. —  piscis  Hiberi :   mackerel. 

—  citra  mare:  Italian;  the  phrase 
is  a  little  too  fine  to  be  used  of 
wine.     Cf.  Sat.  i,   10,  31.  —  dum 
coquitur :    while  it  is   cooking.  — 
cocto :    after  it  is  cooked  Chian 
wine  is  exactly  the  right  thing  to 
pour  in ;  here  also  the  wisdom  is 
clothed  in  fine  language. 


SERMONES 


50      quod  Methymnaeam  vitio  mutaverit  uvam. 
Erucas  viridis,  inulas  ego  primus  amaras 
monstravi  incoquere;  inlutos  Curtillus  echinos, 
ut  melius  muria  quod  testa  marina  remittat.' 
Interea  suspensa  gravis  aulaea  ruinas 

55      in  patinam  fecere,  trahentia  pulveris  atri 

quantum  non  Aquilo  Campanis  excitat  agris. 
Nos  maius  veriti,  postquam  nihil  esse  pericli 
sensimus,  erigimur  :  Rufus  posito  capite,  ut  si 
films  immaturus  obisset,  flere.     Quis  esset 

60     finis,  ni  sapiens  sic  Nomentanus  amicum 

tolleret :  '  Heu,  Fortuna,  quis  est  crudelior  in  nos 
te  deus  ?     Vt  semper  gaudes  illudere  rebus 


50.  The  sense  is  almost  hidden 
under  the  poetic  expression  ; '  vine- 
gar made  by  fermentation  (vitio) 
of  the  Methymnaean  cluster,'  i.e. 
from  Lesbian  wine. 

51  ff.  A  little  claim  to  original 
research  by  Nasidienus — he  had 
discovered  the  good  effect  of  boil- 
ing green  rockets  and  bitter  ele- 
campane into  the  sauce  —  with 
a  generous  acknowledgment  of 
the  investigations  of  a  certain  Cur- 
tillus, who  had  observed  that  if 
sea-urchins  are  not  washed  in  fresh 
water  before  boiling,  the  brine  from 
their  shells  is  better  than  the  ordi- 
nary brine.  The  construction  in 
vs.  53  is  ut  (id)  quod  marina  testa 
(the  shell  of  the  sea-urchin)  re- 
mittat melius  (est)  muria.  Cf. 
89,  note. 

54  ff.  While  Nasidienus  was 
speaking,  the  canopy  which  hung 


from  the  ceiling  suddenly  fell  upon 
the  table,  destroying  the  valuable 
sauce  and  covering  the  guests  with 
dust.  —  Campanis :  the  level  lands 
of  Campania  were  especially  dusty 
in  the  dry  season. 

57.  maius :  the  fall  of  the  ceil- 
ing itself.  —  veriti:   make  this  a 
leading  verb  in  the  translation. 

58.  erigimur:    like    a    middle 
voice  and  in  a  literal  sense,  'we 
lifted  up  our  heads,'  to  contrast 
with  posito  capite.  —  Rufus :    i.e. 
Nasidienus.  —  posito  capite :    this 
also  should  be  a  leading  verb  in 
the  English  ;  '  put  down  his  head 
and  wept.' 

59  f.  Quis  .  .  .  finis:  'what 
would  have  ended  it  ? '  i.e.  '  he 
would  be  crying  still,  had  not 
Nomentanus  .  .  .'  —  sapiens :  like 
a  philosopher,  with  the  philosophic 
remarks  which  follow. 


251 


2,  8,  63] 


HOKATI 


humanis  ! '     Varius  mappa  compescere  risum 
vix  poterat.     Balatro  suspendens  omnia  naso, 

65      '  Haec  est  condicio  vivendi,'  aiebat,  'eoque 
responsura  tuo  numquam  est  par  fama  labori. 
Tene,  ut  ego  accipiar  laute,  torquerier  omni 
sollicitudine  districtum,  ne  panis  adustus, 
ne  male  conditum  ius  apponatur,  ut  omnes 

70      praecincti  recte  pueri  comptique  ministrent ! 
Adde  hos  praeterea  casus,  aulaea  ruant  si, 
ut  modo,  si  patinam  pede  lapsus  frangat  agaso. 
Sed  convivatoris,  uti  ducis,  ingenium  res 
adversae  nudare  solent,  celare  secundae.' 

75      Nasidienus  ad  haec :  '  Tibi  di  quaecumque  preceris 
commoda  dent !     Ita  vir  bonus  es  convivaque  comis  : ' 


63.  Varius  :  a  little  joke  at  the 
expense  of  a  good  friend,  possibly 
with  some  special  point  to  it  which 
their  common  friends  would  see. 

64.  suspendens  .  .  .   naso :    cf. 
Sat.  I,  6,  5,  naso  suspendis  adunco, 
and  note.     Greenough  translates, 
always  a  scornful  cynic.     He  felt 
himself  to  be  a  great  man's  attend- 
ant. 

65.  eo :  for  that  reason,  because 
we  are  all  subject  to  the  chances 
of  life. 

67  ff.  A  distinct  reminiscence, 
both  in  structure  and  in  substance, 
of  the  parasite's  speech  in  Terence, 
Phorm.  339  ff.,  to  which  there  is  a 
reference  also  in  cena  dubia,  Sat. 
2,  2,  77.  —  ego :  ironical,  since 
Balatro  had  come  merely  as  Mae- 
cenas' umbra.  —  laute:  colloquial; 
handsomely.  —  male  conditum  ius : 


with  reference  to  the  sauce  which 
Nasidienus  had  just  been  describ- 
ing. —  compti :  the  dressing  of  the 
hair  of  the  young  slaves  who  waited 
on  the  table  was  attended  to  as 
carefully  as  their  attire. 

71  f.  Adde  .  .  .  praeterea :  'and 
on  the  top  of  it  all  come  such  mis- 
fortunes as  these.'  —  ut  modo :  as 
happened  just  now,  to  distinguish 
the  actual  occurrence  from  the 
imagined  mishap  of  a  fallen  plat- 
ter. —  agaso :  i.e.  some  clumsy 
slave,  no  better  than  a  stable-boy. 

73  f.  uti  ducis :  a  flattering 
comparison;  'the  giver  of  a  dinner 
is  like  a  general.'  —  nudare :  dis- 
close, reveal  his  powers. 

75  f .  Tibi  di .  .  .  dent :  a  common 
kind  of  wish,  often  used  in  greet- 
ings ;  Plaut.  M.  G.  1038,  di  tibi 
dent  quaequomque  optes,  and  cf. 


252 


SERMONES 


[2,  8,  85 


et  soleas  poscit     Turn  in  lecto  quoque  videres 
stridere  secreta  divisos  aure  susurros. 

Hor.    Nullos  his  mallem  ludos  spectasse  ;  sed  ilia 

80     redde,  age,  quae  deinceps  risisti.    Fund.  Vibidius  dum 
quaerit  de  pueris,  num  sit  quoque  f  racta  lagena, 
quod  sibi  poscenti  non  dantur  pocula,  dumque 
ridetur  fictis  rerum  Balatrone  secundo, 
Nasidiene,  redis  mutatae  frontis,  ut  arte 

85      emendaturus  fortunam  ;  deinde  secuti 


Sat.  I,  9,  5,  cupio  omnia  quae 
vis.  It  is  like  'God  bless  you  !' 
Nasidienus  takes  the  ill-bred  irony 
of  Balatro  quite  seriously  and 
simply,  showing  in  fact  better 
manners  than  some  of  his  guests. 

77.  soleas    poscit:      the    light 
shoes  ordinarily  worn  in  the  house 
were   removed  when    the    guests 
took  their  places,  and  to  ask  for 
them  was  to  express  a  desire  to 
rise  from  the  table.     Nasidienus, 
encouraged  by  what  the  two  para- 
sites had  said,  prepares  to  go  on 
with  the  feast  and  gets  up  in  order 
to  have  the  damage  repaired  and 
the   other  dishes  brought  in.  — 
Turn:  when  he  had  gone  out  to 
give  his  orders.  —  quoque:   from 
quisque.  — videres :  you  might  see ; 
indefinite  2d  pers.  with  potential 
meaning,  as  often ;   cf.  Sat.  i,  5, 
76. 

78.  divisos :    first  to  one  side, 
then  to  the  other.     The  allitera- 
tion with  s  imitates  the  sound  of 
whispering. 

79  f.      The     interruption     by 
Horace  marks  the  end  of  the  main 


story  and  introduces  the  conclu- 
sion, giving  the  effect  of  dialogue. 
Cf.  the  similar  and  rather  more 
skilful  dialogue  in  Sat.  2,  3,  300- 
307,  followed  by  the  speech  of 
Damasippus,  307-323.  —  Nullos 
.  .  .  ludos  :  '  I'd  rather  have  seen 
this  than  any  games.'  Greenough 
compares  the  English  'as  good  as 
a  play.'  —  quae  deinceps :  '  what 
you  found  next  to  laugh  at.* 

81  f .  quoque :  with  sit  fracta ; 
he  asked  whether  there  was  an- 
other breakage,  of  the  wine-jugs 
as  well  as  of  the  aulaea.  —  quod  : 
that.  —  pocula :  the  wine,  not  the 
cups.  In  the  confusion  the  slaves 
had  forgotten  to  keep  the  cups 
filled. 

83.  fictis  rerum :  they  invented 
jokes  to  cover  their  laughter  at 
the  fall  of  the  canopy  and  the 
simplicity  of  the  host.  Cf.  vanis 
rerum,  Sat.  2,  2,  25.  —  secundo: 
playing  second  to  Vibidius,  who 
led  the  pretended  jesting. 

84  f.  Nasidiene  :  the  vocative 
and  the  phrase  arte  emendaturus 
are  parodies  of  the  epic  style. 


253 


a,  8, 86] 


HORATI 


mazonomo  pueri  magno  discerpta  ferentes 
membra  gruis  sparsi  sale  multo,  non  sine  farre, 
pinguibus  et  ficis  pastum  iecur  anseris  albae, 
et  leporum  avolsos,  ut  multo  suavius,  armos, 

90     quam  si  cum  lumbis  quis  edit.     Turn  pectore  adusto 
vidimus  et  merulas  poni  et  sine  clune  palumbes, 
suavis  res,  si  non  causas  narraret  earum  et 
naturas  dominus  ;  quem  nos  sic  fugimus  ulti, 
ut  nihil  omnino  gustaremus,  velut  illis 

95      Canidia  afflasset  peior  serpentibus  Afris. 


86.  mazonomo :  properly  a  plat- 
ter for  bread,  here  put  to  a  different 
use  as  a  novelty  in  table-service. 
—  discerpta  :  already  carved ;  the 
custom  was  to  serve  fowls  and 
game  whole  and  have  them  carved 
on  the  table  by  a  specially  trained 
slave. 

87  f.  gruis :  here  masc.,  though 
commonly  fern.,  as  anser,  com- 
monly masc.,  is  here  made  fern. 
The  gender  of  such  words  is 
grammatical  and  somewhat  shift- 
ing, but  apparently  the  unusual 
gender  is  chosen  to  indicate  sex, 
as  though  the  epicure  could  tell 
the  sex  by  the  taste.  —  albae : 
used  in  the  same  way,  to  ridicule 
the  epicure's  claim  to  delicacy  of 
palate.  —  iecur :  a  kind  of  p&te  de 
foie  gras.  And  the  white  goose 
must  have  been  fed  upon  ripe  figs. 

89.  avolsos,  ut  suavius :  an  exact 
parallel  to  inlutos  ut  meltus,  vss. 
52  f. ;  but  the  order  here  expresses 
the  sense  better.  The  doctrine 


that  in  this  case  the  shoulders 
should  be  torn  off,  not  cut,  is  like 
the  notion  that  a  pear  should 
never  be  cut,  a  pure  fantasy. 

90  ft.  edit :  pres.  subjv.,  the 
older  optative  form,  for  the  most 
part  displaced  by  the  regular  subjv. 
edat.  —  The  peculiarity  of  the 
dishes  is  \n.pectore  adusto '  with  the 
breasts  broiled'  and  sine  dune, 
'without  the  rump.'  —  suavis  res  : 
'very  good  eating,  if  only  .  .  .* 
—  causas  .  .  .  et  naturas:  philo- 
sophical terms ;  Nasidienus  dis- 
coursed about  his  dishes  as  a 
philosopher  might  de  renim 
natura. 

93.  sic:  with  ulti,  anticipating 
ut ; ( taking  our  revenge  for  his  talk 
by  not  eating  any  more  of  his  food.' 

95.  Canidia :  often  mentioned 
as  a  sorceress  and  poisoner  and 
directly  attacked  in  Sat.  i,  8  and 
Epod.  5  and  17.  This  personal 
stroke  at  the  end  is  like  Sat.  I,  I, 
120  f.;  1,2,  134. 


HORACE 


THE    EPISTLES 


WITH   INTRODUCTION  AND  NOTES 

BY 
EDWARD   P.   MORRIS 

PROFESSOR  OF  LATIN  IN  YALE  COLLEGE 


NEW  YORK- :•  CINCINNATI-:- CHICAGO 

AMERICAN    BOOK   COMPANY 


COPYRIGHT,  1911,  BY 
EDWARD  P.  MORRIS  AND  MORRIS  H.  MORGAN. 

ENTERED  AT  STATIONERS'  HALL,  LONDON. 


MORRIS.       HORACE,    EPISTLES 

W.  P.    7 


PREFACE 

IT  has  been  taken  for  granted  in  the  preparation  of 
this  edition  that  the  Epistles  are  not  read  until  after  the 
Satires  and  perhaps  after  the  Odes,  and  parallels  in  the 
earlier  poems  have  been  rather  freely  used  for  illustra- 
tion. In  other  respects  the  commentary  is  like  that  upon 
the  Satires,  and  is  intended  to  direct  the  attention  of  the 
reader  both  to  the  artistic  structure  of  the  Epistles  and  to 
the  body  of  ideas  which  Horace  was  endeavoring  to  ex- 
press in  them.  I  have  tried  to  remember  that  the  student, 
learning  his  lessons,  is  in  reality  a  reader. 

E.   P.   MORRIS. 


INTRODUCTION 

THE  Epistles  were  written,  with  perhaps  a  single  exception, 
between  23  B.C.  and  17.  No  event  of  Horace's  life  during  this 
period  is  on  record,  but  from  occasional  references  in  his  writ- 
ings it  is  to  be  seen  that  he  was  at  this  time  living  a  quiet  life, 
partly  in  Rome,  more  often  on  his  farm,  and  sometimes  in  the 
winter  months  at  Baiae  or  in  Southern  Italy.  His  circle  of 
friends  was  large  and  included  many  men  of  high  character  and 
position,  both  in  literature  and  in  public  life.  But  it  was  already 
a  narrowing  circle.  Men  of  the  earlier  generation,  whom  he 
had  known  when  he  was  a  young  man,  were  passing  off  the 
stage  and,  of  his  contemporaries,  Quintilius  Varus  had  died  in 
23,  Vergil  died  in  19,  and  Varius  not  long  after.  He  was 
already,  at  a  little  more  than  forty,  feeling  himself  to  be  a  rep- 
resentative of  an  older  generation.  On  the  other  hand,  as  the 
letters  show,  he  was  on  terms  of  friendly  intercourse  with  the 
younger  men  of  all  sets,  and  he  seems,  indeed,  to  have  made 
a  deliberate  effort  to  cultivate  and  maintain  such  relations.  His 
own  position  in  literature  was  assured.  There  is  evidence, 
it  is  true,  that  he  was  not  beyond  the  reach  of  criticism ;  the 
tone  of  Epist.  i,  19  shows  that;  and  it  is  possible  that  the  first 
reception  of  the  Odes  had  been  less  favorable  than  he  had 
hoped  it  would  be.  Undoubtedly,  also,  the  school  of  the  doeti, 
the  poets  and  critics  who  preferred  the  more  ornate  manner 
of  the  Alexandrian  literature,  was  at  this  time  strong  in  popular 
favor.  But,  with  all  allowance  for  the  difference  between  con- 
temporary judgments  and  the  judgment  of  posterity,  it  is  quite 

7 


INTRODUCTION 

certain  that  Horace  was,  at  the  time  when  the  Epistles  were 
written,  a  leader,  perhaps  a  sort  of  dean  of  letters,  among 
Roman  writers. 

The  course  of  his  life  as  an  artist  up  to  the  year  23  B.C.  is 
clearly  revealed  in  his  writings.  He  had  begun  by  writing 
satires  in  the  general  form  set  by  Lucilius,  but  finding  this  in 
several  ways  unsuited  to  his  temperament  and  recognizing  its 
artistic  limitations,  he  had  made  such  modifications  in  it  as  to 
amount  to  the  creation,  or  perhaps  the  crystallization,  of  a  new 
literary  form,  the  sermo,  the  '  talk '  on  life  and  art.  These 
modifications  were  carried  still  further  in  the  Second  Book  of 
the  Satires ;  the  dialogue,  which  in  the  earlier  book  is  only  half 
recognized,  becomes  in  the  Second  Book  the  framework  of  the 
sermo,  and  is  worked  out  in  the  different  satires  with  very  great 
care.  During  the  same  period,  before  30  B.C.,  Horace  was  also 
making  his  first  attempts  in  lyric  poetry.  For  this  he  chose 
the  somewhat  restricted  field  of  iambi,  that  is,  of  the  form  that 
had  been  fixed  by  Archilochus,  in  which  the  iambic  couplet  was 
used  to  express  a  more  emotional  satire  than  could  be  expressed 
in  hexameters.  He  did  not,  however,  remain  long  content  with 
this  simple  form ;  it  was  only  the  bridge  that  carried  him  over 
from  satire  to  the  more  complex  lyric. 

The  Odes,  of  which  three  books  were  published  as  a  com 
pleted  whole  in  23,  represent  a  second  and  quite  distinct  stage 
in  Horace's  artistic  development.  In  them  he  did  not  consider 
that  he  was  creating  a  new  art  form,  but  only  that  he  was  intro- 
ducing into  Latin  literature  a  form  which  had  not  before  been 
used  there,  the  lyric  form  of  Alcaeus  and  Sappho.  We  have 
too  little  of  the  Greek  lyric  poetry  to  be  able  to  judge  in  detail 
of  the  closeness  with  which  he  followed  his  models,  and  it 
would  perhaps  not  be  correct  to  claim  for  him  more  than  he 
claimed  for  himself.  Yet  it  is  probable  enough  that,  as  he 
became  master  of  this  new  form  and  learned  to  use  it  freely 
for  his  own  purposes,  he  did  with  it  what  Vergil  had  done  with 

8 


INTRODUCTION 

the  idylls  of  Theocritus,  that  is,  employed  it  for  purposes 
different  from  those  for  which  it  was  used  by  its  originators. 
The  connected  group  of  Alcaic  odes  which  stand  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  Third  Book  would  then  represent  a  modification 
in  use  like  that  which  is  represented  in  Vergil's  Fourth  Eclogue. 
Such  an  adaptation  of  the  Alcaic  stanza  to  new  uses  is  in  fact 
a  modification  and  development  of  the  artistic  form,  less  in 
amount  than  Horace  had  undertaken  in  the  development  of 
the  Lucilian  satire,  but  similar  in  kind  and  revealing  the  same 
underlying  artistic  purpose. 

Horace's  career,  then,  as  an  artist,  had  been,  up  to  the  year 
23  B.C.,  that  of  a  man  whose  interest  had  been  in  the  shaping 
of  given  poetic  forms  to  new  uses.  In  satire  the  modifications 
had  been  deliberate  and  of  considerable  effect,  so  that  he  was 
in  this  field  almost  a  creator ;  in  lyric  poetry  the  adaptations 
had  been  of  narrower  scope,  yet  not  without  influence  upon  the 
poetic  form.  He  was  now  to  take  up  a  third  form  of  literature, 
the  Epistle. 

The  history  of  the  epistle  as  a  literary  form  is  not  yet  wholly 
clear.  In  early  Latin  literature  it  was  used  chiefly  for  practical 
ends.  Cato  published  letters  addressed  to  his  son,  probably 
of  a  didactic  character,  and  there  existed  in  Cicero's  time  a 
collection  of  letters  by  Cornelia  to  her  sons,  the  Gracchi. 
Cicero's  own  letters  have  come  down  to  us,  a  most  interesting 
collection,  but  they  are  real  letters  and  can  have  been  only 
in  an  incidental  way  models  for  Horace.  In  verse  the  historical 
sequence  is  even  less  clear.  The  custom  of  dedicating  a  poem 
to  an  individual  by  a  direct  address,  as  Horace  inscribes  his 
first  satire  to  Maecenas,  is  an  approach  to  the  epistolary  form ; 
no  distinct  line  can  be  seen  between  the  manner  in  which  Lucre- 
tius addresses  Memmius  at  intervals  in  the  de  Rerum  Natura 
and  the  occasional  address  to  the  Pisones  in  the  Ars  Poetica. 
Some  of  the  poems  of  Catullus  are  epistolary  in  form  and  even 
in  substance.  But  from  these  scattered  approximations  to  the 

9 


INTRODUCTION 

epistolary  type  we  are  not  able  to  form  an  accurate  conception 
of  any  models  that  Horace  may  have  had  before  him  or  even 
to  be  sure  that  he  had  such  models  at  all. 

The  artistic  problem,  however,  is  clear.  It  was  to  unite  two 
elements,  the  personal  and  the  public,  into  a  harmonious  whole, 
that  is,  to  preserve  a  measure  of  personality  and  individuality 
and  a  certain  degree  of  spontaneity,  and  at  the  same  time  to 
introduce  a  considerable  element  of  a  kind  that  would  be  inter- 
esting to  the  general  reader.  The  two  are  to  some  extent 
antagonistic.  The  easy  confidence  which  characterizes  the  best 
private  letters  is  so  delicate  that  it  almost  surely  disappears 
if  it  is  known  to  the  writer  that  the  letter  is  to  be  read  by  others 
than  the  person  addressed.  Yet  if  this  disappears  entirely,  the 
epistle  is  a  letter  only  in  form.  In  the  solution  of  this  problem, 
Horace  has  gone  from  one  side  to  the  other,  as  circumstances 
led  him,  allowing  first  one,  then  the  other,  element  to  predomi- 
nate. The  invitation  to  dinner  (i,  5)  addressed  to  Torquatus 
is  so  personal  and  natural  that  this  may  well  have  been  a  real 
letter  for  a  real  purpose,  put  into  verse  form  for  the  mere  pleas- 
ure of  the  writer  and  for  the  compliment  which  it  paid  to  the 
recipient.  The  same  thing  is  true  of  i,  9,  introducing  Septimius 
to  Tiberius.  One  of  the  three  Epistles  to  Maecenas  (i,  7)  is 
extremely  personal,  both  to  the  writer  and  to  the  recipient,  so 
much  so  that  it  seems  almost  too  confidential  for  publication, 
yet  it  contains  some  of  Horace's  best  stories  and  is  in  parts  not 
distinguishable  from  Sat.  2,  6.  In  others,  1,3;  i,  n;  i,  12; 
i,  15,  the  situation  of  the  recipient  or  the  writer  is  made  the 
occasion  for  comments  equally  interesting  to  the  general  public  ; 
in  i,  3  this  has  been  done  with  special  success,  and  the  two 
elements  are  so  harmoniously  blended  that  it  is  impossible  to 
tell  whether  this  is  really  a  letter,  sent  as  is  implied,  or  an 
Epistle  written  on  the  model  of  a  personal  letter.  At  the  other 
extreme,  i,  16  opens  with  a  description  of  the  farm,  but  runs 
off  into  a  poem  which  has  nothing  of  the  tone  of  a  letter  in  it, 

TO 


INTRODUCTION 

while  1,2  is  a  letter  chiefly  by  virtue  of  the  address  and  the 
closing  lines,  and  i,  6  is  not  a  letter  at  all,  but  a  sermo  on 
philosophy  addressed  to  an  individual.  To  the  skillful  mingling 
of  these  two  elements,  the  personal  and  the  public,  Horace  has 
plainly  devoted  much  thought,  shaping  the  Epistle  into  a 
literary  form,  as  he  had  shaped  the  dialogue-satire,  and  per- 
haps extending  its  range,  as  he  had  extended  the  range  of  the 
Alcaic  stanza. 

All  this,  however,  applies  chiefly  to  the  First  Book.  In  the 
Second  Book  there  is  less  attempt  to  preserve  the  epistolary 
form.  The  Ars  Poetica  has  scarcely  anything  but  the  address 
-  to  remind  the  reader  that  it  is  an  Epistle.  In  2,  2  the  fiction 
of  excusing  himself  from  further  writing  of  lyrics  is  used  by 
Horace  to  furnish  a  framework  for  the  thought  through  the 
first  half,  but  the  latter  part  is  quite  impersonal.  The  letter 
to  Augustus  (2,  i)  is  inevitably  formal,  but  the  consciousness 
that  it  is  addressed  to  one  who  had  it  in  his  power  to  influence 
the  trend  of  literary  taste  is  present  through  the  whole  and  influ- 
ences the  thought. 

It  is  not  to  be  thought,  however,  that  Horace's  attention  was 
given  wholly  to  the  form  of  his  writings.  He  was  primarily 
an  artist  in  words  and  phrases  and  forms  of  expression,  but  he 
had  also  something  to  say.  In  the  First  Epistle  he  announces 
the  subject  of  the  new  collection  ;  he  has  given  up  lyric  poetry 
and  is  to  devote  himself  hereafter  to  philosophy,  not,  indeed, 
the  philosophy  of  a  sect,  but  the  philosophy  of  life.  This 
announcement  fairly  describes  the  subject-matter  or  the  point 
of  view  of  the  book.  A  few  of  the  Epistles  (i,  5  ;  i,  9;  i,  13) 
make  no  reference  to  it;  in  others  (1,2;  i,  4 ;  i,  6 ;  i,  16)  it  is 
the  staple  of  the  Epistle ;  in  several,  including  some  of  the  best 
(1,3;  i,  8;  i,  ii  ;  i,  12  ;  i,  15),  it  is  not  quite  the  subject,  but 
is  the  conclusion,  as  if  to  show  how  in  the  writer's  mind  all 
things  lead  back  to  the  large  philosophy  of  life.  But  Horace 
was  not  by  temper  or  habit  a  student  or  what  is  called  a  pro- 

II 


INTRODUCTION 

found  thinker.  He  was  a  man  who  had  seen  much  of  life  on 
various  sides,  had  observed  many  men  and  had  given  serious 
thought  to  their  conduct  and  his  own.  Out  of  this  experience 
and  consideration,  he  had  come  to  certain  conclusions  which 
he  had  formulated  into  what  we  call,  loosely,  a  philosophy  of 
life.  It  was  not,  of  course,  a  philosophy  of  the  schools ;  it  did 
not  concern  itself  with  questions  of  natural  or  physical  science 
or  with  the  nature  of  knowledge,  and,  though  it  was  ethical,  it 
did  not  involve  the  fundamental  problems  of  ethics.  But  it  had 
this  in  common  with  ethical  philosophy,  that  it  was  based  upon 
a  real  comprehension  of  vital  interests  and  that  it  was  to  Horace 
a  true  and  determining  principle  of  life.  In  this  sense  he  was 
justified  in  regarding  himself  .as  a  philosopher  and  in  feeling 
it  to  be  his  right  and  his  duty  to  summon  other  men  to  accept 
his  doctrine.  He  is  thus,  as  indeed  he  had  been  in  the  earlier 
days  of  the  Satires,  a  preacher,  uttering  his  doctrine  with  con- 
viction and  seriousness.  Perhaps  it  should  rather  be  said  that 
he  was  at  once  preacher  and  artist.  The  variety  of  setting  and 
of  personalities  which  a  collection  of  letters  involves  afforded 
him  an  opportunity  to  set  forth  his  philosophy  with  variety, 
as  a  climax  and  a  final  answer  to  all  troubles  and  queries  and 
situations. 

The  subject  of  the  Second  Book  is  literature ;  the  three  long 
letters  consist  of  comments  on  the  prevailing  tendencies  of 
literature  in  Rome.  In  this  comment  some  two  or  three  ele- 
ments are  combined.  Horace  had  read,  though  perhaps  not 
very  deeply  or  widely,  the  treatises  on  rhetoric  and  on  the 
history  of  literature,  and  he  made  considerable  use  of  the  knowl- 
edge thus  acquired.  Much  of  this,  however,  must  be  recognized 
as  conventional  and  traditional,  without  any  very  real  connection 
with  the  condition  of  things  in  Rome.  Especially  the  history 
of  literature,  of  the  drama  or  the  safura,  or  the  origins  of  certain 
poetic  forms,  which  was  once  accepted  as  authoritative,  must 
not  be  taken  seriously.  Horace  had  no  access  to  real  sources, 

13 


INTRODUCTION 

for  example,  of  the  early  Latin  literature ;  no  such  sources  ex- 
isted. This  element  in  his  writings  has  no  great  value  or  inter- 
est. A  second  element  has  more  life  in  it;  in  so  far  as  his 
comments  reveal  the  tendencies  of  contemporary  literature,  they 
have  real  value.  The  extant  remains  of  the  literature  of  the 
Augustan  Age,  even  though  they  include  so  much,  are  but 
scanty  in  amount  compared  with  the  writings  of  all  kinds  that 
were  published  in  that  period,  and  all  the  glimpses  that  we  get 
in  Horace  of  the  work  of  younger  men  or  of  minor  writers 
enable  us  to  understand  better  the  literature  that  has  survived. 
A  third  element  is  the  most  important  of  all;  it  is  the  personal 
judgment  which  Horace  expresses.  For  the  work  of  the  critic 
he  was  all  the  better  qualified  because  his  own  work  was  not 
inspired,  but  was  the  result  of  a  conscious  process.  He  had 
thought  much  of  the  choice  of  words,  of  the  combination  of 
phrases,  of  the  enlargement  of  vocabulary,  and  all  that  he  says 
on  such  things  is  weighty  with  authority.  One  of  the  most 
interesting  of  experiences  is  to  hear  a  good  craftsman  speak  of 
the  art  that  he  practices.  It  is  this  which  makes  Cicero's 
Brutus  and  Orator  interesting ;  Horace's  presentation  is  more 
indirect  than  Cicero's  and  less  systematic,  but  it  has  the  same 
essential  quality  of  authority. 

It  is  not  always  possible  to  distinguish  these  three  elements, 
the  traditional,  the  contemporary,  and  the  personal,  but  so  far 
as  it  is  possible  it  throws  much  light  upon  the  meaning  of  these 
Epistles.  Thus  it  is  probable  that  the  great  space  given  to  the 
drama  has  nothing  to  do  with  Horace's  own  interest ;  it  may 
be  due  to  some  transient  public  interest,  but  it  is  probably  a 
tradition  from  the  books  of  rhetoric.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is 
not  unlikely  that  the  discussion  of  the  satyric  drama  is  to  be 
explained  by  a  revived  interest  in  mimes  and  farces.  But 
much  of  the  general  discussion  of  poetry,  the  injunctions  to  fre- 
quent revision,  the  constant  reference  to  Greek  models,  comes 
from  Horace  himself  and  constitutes  the  most  attractive  element 


INTRODUCTION 

in  these  writings.  For  behind  the  artist  and  critic  the  Epistles 
reveal  to  us  a  man  of  most  human  temper  and  judgment,  at  once 
shrewd  and  mellow,  by  turns  an  observer  of  men  and  a  lover 
of  retirement.  To  turn  back  after  reading  the  latest  of  these 
letters,  Epist.  2,  i,  and  reread  Sat.  i,  7  and  i,  8,  is  to  see  what 
some  twenty  years  of  life  had  done  for  Horace. 


•fce/zji-5' 
Q.    HORATI    FLACC1 

EPISTVLAE 

LIBER  PRIMVS 


The  date  of  this  Epistle  is  not  fixed  by  any  definite  allusion  in  the 
text.  It  is,  however,  clearly  introductory  to  the  book  and  was  therefore 
written  after  the  others,  at  about  the  same  date  as  Epist.  20,  in  the 
year  20  B.C.  This  was  three  years  after  the  publication  of  the  first 
three  books  of  the  Odes  ;  the  writer  was  nearly  forty-five  years  old. 

'  My  dear  Maecenas,  you  are  proposing  that  I  should  go  back  to  my 

[verse  writing.  I  must  decline  the  invitation  ;  I  have  won  my  discharge 
and  am  through  with  the  follies  of  youth.  Philosophy  is  now  my  only 
interest.  "  What  school  ? "  you  ask.  My  own  school  ;  sometimes  I 
rise  to  Stoic  heights,  and  then,  before  I  know  it,  I  am  a  follower  of  Ans- 
tippus.  But,  school  or  no  school,  I  am  impatient  of  delay.  For  even 
the  rudiments  of  philosophy  have  their  value  ;  they  will  cure  our  ava- 
rice, our  ambition,  our  laziness.  And  to  get  rid  of  our  faults  is  the 
beginning  of  wisdom.  See  what  pains  men  take  to  satisfy  their  desires, 
when  half  the  labor  would  rid  them  of  the  desire  itself.  But  all  the 
Roman  world  is  money-mad  and  careless,  in  its  madness,  of  the  higher 
claim  of  character. 

'  I  know  that  I  am  setting  myself  against  the  common  judgment,  but 
the  common  judgment  is  both  inconsistent  and  inconstant.  It  is,  in 
fact,  a  ludicrous  exhibition  of  whims  and  contradictions.  You  laugh  at 
it  yourself,  as  you  laugh,  rightly  enough,  at  my  carelessness  in  dress. 
But  don't  you  see  that  carelessness  in  regard  to  the  principles  of  life  is 
much  worse  ?  This  is  the  very  thing  that  I  am  trying  to  cure  by  the 
study  of  philosophy.  I  tell  you,  philosophy  is  a  cure  for  everything  — 
except  influenza.' 

This  introductory  epistle  has  two  objects,  which  are  not  distinctly 
stated,  but  are  left  to  be  inferred  from  the  general  tone.  The  first  is 


If  I. 1] 


HORATI 


to  explain  the  writer's  change  from  lyric  poetry  back  to  the  social 
comments  with  which  he  began  his  career  in  the  Satires.  This  is 
accomplished  by  the  device  of  a  supposed  request  from  Maecenas  — 
which  may  or  may  not  have  been  real  —  that  Horace  would  continue 
his  writing  of  lyrics.  In  answering  this  request  the  writer  is  able  to 
give,  without  the  appearance  of  egotism,  his  reasons  for  following  a 
different  course.  The  second  purpose  is  to  announce  the  fact  that  this 
collection  of  writings  contains,  more  distinctly  than  the  Satires,  a  kind 
of  life  philosophy,  not  systematic  and  not  too  serious,  yet  by  no  means 
wholly  humorous. 

Of  the  change  of  form,  from  the  satire  to  the  epistle,  nothing  is  said. 
It  is  evident  and  is  left  to  explain  itself. 

Prima  dicte  mihi,  summa  dicende  Camena, 
spectatum  satis  et  donatum  iam  rude  quaeris, 
Maecenas,  iterum "antique  me  includere  ludo. 
Non  eadem  est  aetas,  non  mens.     Veianius,  armis 


1 .  This  verse,  like  the  first  two 
verses  of  the  first  Ode,  is  distinct 
in  thought  from  the  rest  of  the 
poem  and  constitutes  therefore  a 
more  formal  dedication  than  that 
with  which  the  first  Satire  and  the 
first  Epode  begin.  —  The  thought 
is  entirely  general ;  cf.  Verg.  Ed. 
8,   11,  a  te  (Pollio)  principium, 
tibi  desinam ;  Horace  is  not  think- 
ing of  the  precise  chronology  of 
his  writings  nor,  in  using  Camen& 
(the  Latin  equivalent  of  Aftesa), 
is  he  distinguishing  between  satire 
and  lyric  poetry. 

2.  spectatum:  a  technical  term 
applied   to  a  gladiator  who   had 
fought  with    credit.     The  letters 
sp.  or  spect.,  on  medals  (tesserae*) 
presented  to  such  gladiators,  seem 
to  be  an  abbreviation  of  this  word. 
—  rude :    the  -wooden  sword  was 
given  to  a  gladiator  when  he  was 


finally  discharged  from  service  ;  he 
was  thereafter  rndiarins  (=  dona- 
ins  rude).  The  implied  compari- 
son of  one  who  had  completed  his 
term  of  service  to  a  discharged 
gladiator  occurs  in  other  writers 
also. 

3.  antique  .  .  .  ludo :  '  in  the 
old  gladiatorial  school  where  I 
used  to  serve.'  But  there  is  also 
a  suggestion  of  the  other  meaning 
of  Indus,  which  is  taken  up  again 
in  vs.  10.  —  includere:  this  word 
is  selected  to  contrast  the  disci- 
pline of  the  gladiator's  life  with 
the  freedom  of  the  rndianus. 

4-6.  Veianius:  the  context- im- 
plies that  he  had  been  successful 
and  had  retired.  —  Herculis  :  so 
Horace,  Carm.  3,  26.  3  f,  pro- 
poses to  dedicate  to  Venus  the  lyre 
with  which  he  had  accompanied 
his  love  songs  and  in  Carm. 


16 


EHSTVLAE 


[i,  i,  ii 


IO 


Herculis  ad  postern  fixis,  latet  abditus  agro, 
ne  populum  extrema  totiens  exoret  arena. 
Est  mihi  purgatam  crebro  qui  personet  aurem : 
*  Solve  senescentem  mature  sanus  equum,  ne 
peccet  ad  extremum  ridendus  et  ilia  ducat.' 
Nunc  itaque  et  versus  et  cetera  ludicra  pono ; 
quid  verum  atque  clecens  euro  et  rogo  et  omnis  in  hoc 
sum; 


I,  5,  13  ff.,  the  shipwrecked  sailor 
hangs  his  dripping  garments  in  the 
temple  of  Neptune.  —  latet  abdi- 
tus :  to  be  taken  together ;  '  goes 
and  buries  himself  in  the  coun- 
try.'—  ne  .  .  .  exoret:  i.e.,  lest  he 
should  be  tempted  again  into  his 
old  life,  with  its  inevitable  conse- 
quences.—  extrema  .  .  .  arena: 
the  defeated  gladiator  laid  down 
his  arms  and  went  toward  the 
barrier  between  the  seats  and  the 
arena  to  ask  for  favor  and  par- 
don. This  would  be  granted  by 
the  giver  of  the  games  when  the 
spectators  (populus)  indicated 
that  they  were  satisfied  with  the 
fight.  —  totiens :  so  many  times,  as 
he  would  probably  be  obliged  to, 
if  he  went  back  into  the  profes- 
sion. —  This  line  suggests  what  is 
put  more  clearly  in  vss.  8-9,  that 
Horace  felt  himself  to  be  too  old 
for  resuming  the  writing  of  poe- 
try. 

7.  est  qui :  render  freely ;  « I 
hear  a  voice  that  warns  me.  .  .  .' 
—  purgatam,  crebro,  personet : 
these  emphasize  in  different  ways 
the  idea  that  the  warning  is  clear 
HOK.  EP.  —  2 


and  unmistakable.  Cf.  Sat.  i,  3, 
25,  per-v  ideas  .  .  .  lippiis,  sec 
dimly. 

8-9.  The  figure  of  the  old  race- 
horse repeats  more  distinctly  the 
whole  thought  of  vss.  2-7.  — 
sanus:  'if  you  are  wise,'  as  in 
Sat.  i,  5,  44,  nil  ego  contitleriin 
iucundo  sanus  amico,  and  Sat.  i, 
6,  89.  —  ilia  ducat :  strain  his 
flanks,  become  broken-winded. 

10.  itaque :  acknowledging  the 
force  of  the  argument  which  un- 
derlies the  preceding  comparisons. 

—  cetera  ludicra :    i.e.,  '  as  I   lay 
aside  all  the  other  light  pursuits, 
amusements,  in   order  to   devote 
myself    to     serious     philosophy.' 
The    implication     is     that    verse 
writing  is  also  ludicrum ;  cf.  Sat. 
i,   10,   37,  haec  ego  ludo,  of  the 
Satires. 

11.  verum:    the   general  term. 

—  decens  :  more  specific,  translat- 
ing the  technical  term  TO  TrptVov, 
which    Cicero   translates   also   by 
honestum ;  true  and  right.  —  om- 
nis in  hoc :  cf.  Sat.  1,  9,  2,  totus 
in  illis. 


«7 


I,  I. 


HORATi 


condo  et  compono  quae  mox  depromere  possim. 
Ac  ne  forte  roges  quo  me  duce,  quo  lare  tuter, 
nullius  addictus  iurare  in  verba  magistri, 
quo  me  cumque  rapit  tempestas,  deferor  hospes. 
Nunc  agilis  fio  et  mersor  civilibus  undis, 
virtutis  verae  custos  rigid  usque  satelles ; 
nunc  in  Aristippi  furtim  praecepta  relabor, 
et  mihi  res,  non  me  rebus,  subiungere  conor. 


12.  condo,  depromere  :  regularly 
used  of  laying  in  and.  later,  draw- 
ing out  a  stock  of  provisions  at 
a  country  house.  —  compono :  ar- 
range in  order. 

13.  ne  . . .  roges :  cf.  nete  morer, 
Sat.    I,  I,  14.     A   leading  clause 
may   be   expressed    (ciudi,  scito), 
but  is  not  necessary. — The  ques- 
tion to  what  school  of  formal  phi- 
losophy Horace  proposed  to  attach 
himself  is  one  which,  in  fact,  would 
not  have  been  asked  by  Maecenas 
or  by  any  reader  of  the  Satires  and 
Odes,  since  Horace   has  made  it 
abundantly  clear  that  he  did  not 
belong  to   any  school.     But   the 
question  with  the   humorous   an- 
swer, vss.  14-19,  leads  on  to  the 
illustrations  of  a  practical   social 
philosophy,   which    make  up   the 
main  body  of  the  epistle. — lare: 
a  school  of  philosophy  was  some- 
times   called  familia    or   domus 
(Carm.  i,  29, 14)  and  might  there- 
fore be  supposed  to  have  a  hearth 
and  a  Lar  familiar  is. 

14.  addictus :     property     of    a 
debtor,  bound  enter  or  assigned  to 
the  creditor,  but  also   used  of  a 


gladiator;  the  line  is  thus  a  remi- 
niscence of  vss.  2-6  and  the  figure 
is  continued  in  iurare  and  magis- 
tri, which  may  be  cither  master 
of  a  gladiatorial  school  or  of  a 
philosophical  sect. 

15.  tempestas :  the  figure  was 
a  common  one ;  cf.  Cic.  Acad. 
2,  3,  8,  ad  quamcumque  snnt  dis- 
ciplinam  quasi  tempestate  delati, 
and  Ephes.  4,  14,  'carried  about 
with  every  wind  of  doctrine.' 

16-17.  The  sense  is  '  I  become 
for  a  time  a  Stoic.'  —  agilis :  TrpaK- 
TIKOS.  The  Stoic  doctrine  was 
that  intelligent  action  was  a  neces- 
sary part  of  the  philosopher's  life 
and  that  he  should  therefore  take 
his  part  in  public  matters.  — There 
is  humorous  irony  in  almost  every 
word  of  vs.  17,  especially  verae, 
custos,  rigidus. 

18-19.  'Then  again  I  slip 
quietly  back  into  the  school  of 
Aristippus.'  Cf.  (he  story  referred 
to  in  Sat.  2,  3,  100  ff.,  which  illus- 
trates the  way  in  which  Aristippus 
released  himself  from  the  bondage 
of  thins.  —  There  is  iron  also  in 


18 


EPISTVLAE 


[if  1.29 


Vt  nox  longa  quibus  mentitur  arnica,  diesque 
longa  videtur  opus  debentibus,  ut  piger  annus 
pupillis  quos  dura  premit  custodia  matrum, 
sic  mihi  tarda  fluunt  ingrataque  tempora,  quae  spem 
consiliumque  morantur  agendi  gnaviter  id  quod 
aeque  pauperibus  prodest,  locupletibus  aeque, 
aeque  neglectum  pueris  senibusque  nocebit. 
Restat  ut  his  ego  me  ipse  regam  solerque  elementis. 
Non  possis  oculo  quantum  contendere  Lynceus, 
non  tamen  idcirco  contemnas  lippus  inungi ; 


21.  opus  debentibus:  'to  those 
who  are  obliged  to  work  by 
the  day,'  servants  and  day  la- 
borers. 

21-22.  A  year  seems  an  endless 
time  to  a  boy  eagerly  anticipating 
the  day  when  he  shall  be  his 
own  master  and  chafing  under 
restraint.  To  him  any  control 
seems  harsh  and  oppressive  (dura, 
premit),  especially  control  by  a 
woman,  even  by  his  mother. 
Strictly,  a  fatherless  boy  would  be 
under  the  guardianship  (ttttela} 
of  a  man ;  custodia  is  used  only 
in  a  general  sense. 

23-24.  spem  consiliumque :  the 
intention  already  announced  in 
vss.  n-12. — morantur:  it  is  not 
precisely  the  time  which  causes 
the  delay,  but  the  obstacles  in  the 
form  of  other  occupations,  like  the 
writing  of  poetry.  —  agendi  ...  id 
quod :  i.e.,  ( of  devoting  myself 
wholly  to  philosophy.' 

25-26.  Instead  of  using  some 
single  word  for  philosophy  (vir- 


tus, sapientia,  vs.  41)  or  some 
phrase  like  verum  atque  deceits 
(vs.  u)  which  would  emphasize 
the  theoretical  side,  Horace  here 
lays  stress  upon  philosophy  as  a 
guide  in  the  practical  affairs  of  life. 
There  is  a  half-humorous  earnest- 
ness in  the  sweeping  phrases  ;  not 
only  prodest,  but  also  (si  neglectum 
fuerif)  nocebit,  and  it  applies  to 
all  ages  and  conditions. 

27.  restat:  ie.,  'in  spite  of  de- 
lays (20-24)  and  of  my  inability 
to  attain  to  perfection  (24-29),  I 
can  at  least  get  a  rudimentary 
knowledge  that  will  meet  mv 
practical  needs.'  —  his:  without 
definite  reference  either  backward 
or  forward ;  '  such  rudiments  as 
I  have.'  —  ipse  regam  solerque: 
since  he  has  no  dux  or  lar  (vs. 
13)  to  guide  or  protect  him. 

28-31.  The  same  idea  is  ex- 
pressed twice  in  the  two  compar- 
isons, with  slight  variation  in  the 
construction.  Non  possis  is  re- 
peated in  desperest  both 


3°J 


HORATI 


30      nec,  quia  desperes  invicti  membra  Glyconis, 
nodosa  corpus  nolis  prohibere  cheragra. 
Est  quadam  prodire  tenus,  si  non  datur  ultra. 
Fervet  avaritia  miseroque  cupidine  pectus : 
sunt  verba  et  voces,  quibus  hunc  lenire  dolorem 

}5      possis  et  magnam  morbi  deponere  partem. 


potentials  of  the  indefinite  sec- 
ond person,  and  the  two  clauses 
are  at  the  same  time  concessive, 
as  is  implied  by  tameu,  and 
causal ;  the  causal  meaning  is 
expressed  by  idcirco  in  the  first 
main  clause  and  by  quia  in  the 
second  subordinate  clause.  —  oculo 
.  .  .  contendere :  so  quantum  po- 
tero  voce  contendam,  Cic.  pro  Lig. 
3,  6.  —  Lynceus :  the  far-sighted 
Argonautic  hero,  referred  to  also 
in  Sat.  i,  2,  90.  —  Glyconis:  a 
famous  athlete,  to  whom  a  Greek 
epigram  (Anth.  Pal.  7,  692)  is 
addressed ;  he  is  called  6  Tra^u.- 
fMi\tov  and  the  adj.  dviJcaro?  (in- 
irictns)  is  applied  to  him.  — 
prohibere  cheragra :  for  the  con- 
struction cf.  Epist.  i,  8,  10,  me 
arcere  veterno.  The  other  con- 
struction, prohibere  cheragram  a 
corpora  is  more  frequent.  Gout 
in  the  hand  or  in  the  foot  (/<?- 
dagra)  was  called  nodosa  because 
of  the  chalk  stones  that  it  pro- 
duces in  the  joints. 

32.  est:  almost  the  sam^  as 
potest,  but  with  the  implication 
that  it  is  also  worth  while,  since 
it  is  possible.  This  is  the  main 
thought  of  the  whole  passage,  27- 


40,  expressed  in  possis,  28,  possis, 
35,  poterunt,  37,  and  possit,  39. 
—  quadam  .  .  .  tenus:  like  qua- 
tenuSj  hactenus. 

33.  avaritia :    the    vice    which 
Horace    everywhere   puts    at    the 
head   of  his   list;    cf.  Sat.   I,    I, 
Epod.  i,  33  f.,  and  often.  —  cupi- 
dine :    the  general  term,  passion, 
following     the     particular ;     they 

.mean  only  one  thing,  as  hunc 
dolorem  shows. 

34.  verba  et  voces  :  words  and 
sayings,  i.e.,  teachings  of  philoso- 
phy which  will  be  as  effectual  as 
the  magic  formulas  by  which  dis- 
ease  is    cured.      This   does    not 
imply  a  real  belief  in  charms,  any 
more  than  the  English  phrase  '  it 
acts   like  magic.1    The  line   is  a 
paraphrase  of  a  well-known  line 
of  Euripides,  Hippol.  478. 

35.  morbi:  a  translation  of  ird- 
0os,  the  technical  term  for  a  dis- 
turbing  passion,  used   here   with 
literal  meaning  also;    cf.  fervet, 
lenire,   dolorem,   tumes,   recreare, 
all  words  from  the  medical  vocab- 
ulary. —  partem :    the   same   idea 
already  expressed  in  element  is,  est 
quadam  prodire  tenus.  and  in  vss. 
28-31. 


20 


EPISTVLAE 


I.  44 


•  Laudis  amore  tumes  :  sunt  certa  piacula,  quae  te 
ter  pure  lecto  poterunt  recreare  libello. 
Invidus,  iracundus,  iners,  vinosus,  amator, 
nemo  adeo  ferus  est  ut  non  mitescere  possit, 
|o      si  modo  culturae  patientem  commodet  aurem. 
Virtus  est  vitium  fugere,  et  sapientia  prima 
stultitia  caruisse.     Vides  quae  maxima  credis 
esse  mala,  exiguum  censum  turpemque  repulsam, 
quanto  devites  animi  capitisque  labore ; 


36.  laudis  amore :  ambition  ;  cf. 
Sat.  2,  3,  164  ff.,  .esp.  tutnidum, 
213.  —  piacula :    =  verba  et  voces. 

37.  ter:     the  sacred    number, 
carrying  on  the  thought   of  pia- 
cnla ;  cf.  Sat.  2,  i,  7  f.,  ter  uncti 
transnanto  Tiberim.  —  pure :  after 
religious      purification.  —  libello : 
the   little   book   of  magic  verses 
and  also  the  book  of  philosophic 
teaching. 

38-40.  The  list  of  sins  —  not  un- 
like the  seven  deadly  sins  of  early 
Christian  teaching  —  is  summed 
up  in  nemo,  by  a  kind  of  apposi- 
tion. —  amator :  cf.  Sat.  2,  3,  247- 
280.  —  ferus :  a  change  of  figure ; 
the  cure  of  envy  or  hot  temper 
by  philosophy  is  like  the  taming 
(mitescere)  of  a  wild  animal.  — 
culturae :  properly  of  the  cultiva- 
tion of  land,  but  in  this  line  the 
figurative  meaning  is  almost  lost 
sight  of  and  patientem  commodst 
aurem  is  used  simply  of  the  lis- 
tener to  philosophic  teaching. 

41.  prima:  with  virtus  as  well 
as  with  sapientia.  The  sentence  is 
used  in  a  condensed  form  (prima 


virtus  est  vitio  carere)  by  Quin- 
tilian,  8,  3,  41,  and  was  probably 
a  current  maxim  of  philosophy. 
It  summarizes  and  enforces  the 
thought  of  vss.  28-40 ;  '  it  is 
worth  while  to  take  the  first  steps 
by  listening  to  the  teachings  of 
wisdom,  by  which  our  faults  may 
be  cured.  For  to  get  rid  of  our 
follies  is  the  beginning  of  wisdom.' 
At  the  same  time  it  introduces 
the  argument  of  42-52  ;  'take  the 
first  steps,  which  are  not  difficult ; 
for  half  the  labor  you  spend  in 
the  pursuit  of  your  foolish  ends 
would  suffice  to  rid  you  of  your 
folly.' 

43.  exiguum  censum:  referring 
to  avaritia. — turpem  repulsam: 
referring  to  ambition,  laudis  amor. 

44.  animi     capitisque     labore : 
this  cannot  be  simply  'labor  of 
mind  and  body.'  —  animi  labor  is 
'  trouble  of  spirit,'  capitis  labor  is 
'risk  of  life';  labor  is  used  in  a 
vague  sense  for  which  there  is  no 
exact  English  equivalent  and  must 
therefore  be  translated  twice, '  anx- 
iety of  spirit  and  peril  of  life.' 


21 


I, 45] 


HORATI 


45      impiger  extremes  curris  mercator  ad  Indos, 

per  mare  pauperiem  f  ugiens,  per  saxa,  per  ignis . 
ne  cures  ea,  quae  stulte  miraris  et  optas, 
discere,  et  audire,  et  meliori  credere  non  vis  ? 
Quis  circum  pagos  et  circum  compita  pugnax 

50      magna  coronari  contemnat  Olympia,  cui  spes, 
cui  sit  condicio  dulcis  sine  pulvere  palmae  ? 
Vilius  argentum  est  auro,  virtutibus  aurum. 

'  O  cives,  cives,  quaerenda  pecunia  primum  est, 


45-46.  The  thought  is  often 
expressed  by  Horace,  in  substan- 
tially this  form;  cf.  Sat.  i,  I,  30; 
I,  4,  29  ff. ;  Carm.  i,  31,  10  ff.  It 
was  undoubtedly  proverbial. 

47-48.  'Are  you  not  willing  to 
attain  the  same  end,  freedo;n  from 
anxieties,  by  the  easier  method  of 
learning  from  philosophy  to  be 
indifferent  to  your  foolish  ambi- 
tions ? '  —  ne  cures  :  a  clause  of 
purpose,  depending  on  the  whole 
of  the  next  line ;  '  in  order  to  at- 
tain to  indifference.'  —  meliori : 
the  wise  philosopher,  whose  supe- 
riority the  learner  acknowledges 
by  the  act  of  seeking  instruction 
from  him. 

49.  circum    .  .  .    pugnax:     an 
allusion  to  the  wrestlers  and  boxers 
who   gave    street    shows    to    the 
crowds  gathered  for  feast  days  like 
the     Paganalia    and    Compitalia. 
They  are  alluded  to  in  other  places 
(Suet.  Oct.  45,  catervarifoppidanii 
inter  angustias  •vicomin  pugnan- 
tes).  —  circum    compita:    also    in 
Sat.  2.  3,  281. 

50.  Olympia  :  a  cognate  accus., 


like  vicit  Olympia,  Cic.  Cat.  M. 
14,  both  from  the  Greek  <TT£<£UVOU- 
cr&u  'OAiyATrta. 

51.  sine  pulvere :  O.KOVITL.   The 
expression  was  proverbial  and  was 
extended  beyond  its  strict  mean- 
ing, so  that  it  came  to  be  used  of 
prizes  awarded  to  athletes  whose 
fame  was   so   great   that   no  one 
dared  to  contend  with  them.     It 
suggests  therefore   the  ease  with 
which  the  benefits  of  philosophy 
may  be   obtained,  in   contrast  to 
the    struggles    necessary    to    get 
money  or  satisfy  ambition  (44-46). 

52.  The  conclusion  of  the  argu- 
ment ;  'just  so  character,  the  pro- 
duct of  philosophy,  is  better  than 
the  rewards   which   men   rate  so 
high.'     But,  as  often,  the  conclu- 
sion is  put  in  the  form  of  a  general 
assertion,  without  indication  of  its 
connection  (Sat.  I,  I,  59  f.,  78  f., 
105;   1,3,24;   i.  6.  23,  and  often), 
and  in  a  form  which  leaves  its  real 
force   intentionally   in   the    back- 
ground. 

53-69.    '  But  this  conclusion,  we 
must  acknowledge,  runs  counter  to 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  I,  60 


virtus  post  nummos.'     Haec  lanus  summus  ab  imo 
55      prodocet,  haec  recinunt  iuvenes  dictata  senesque, 
laevo  suspensi  loculos  tabulamque  lacerto. 
Est  animus  tibi,  sunt  mores  et  lingua  fidesque, 
sed  quadringentis  sex  septem  milia  desunt : 
plebs  eris.     At  pueri  ludentes,  '  Rex  eris,'  aiunt, 
60      '  si  recte  fades.'     Hie  murus  aeneus  esto, 


the  opinion  of  Rome,  which  places 
money  above  character.' 

54.  summus  ab  imo :  from  top 
to  bottom  ;  cf.  A.  P.  254,  primus 
ad  extremum,  from   beginning  to 
end.     But  the  precise  meaning  of 
the  phrase  as  applied  to  lanus  is 
not  clear,  because  our  knowledge 
of  the  topography  of  the  Forum  in 
the     Augustan     period     is     very 
limited.      The   same   spot    is  re- 
ferred to  in  Sat.  2,  3,  18  (tnedius 
lanus)  and  by  Cicero  as  the  center 
of  the  banking  business  in  Rome  ; 
it  was  in  the  lower  corner  of  the 
Forum.      Translate   'Janus,  from 
top    to    bottom,'   like    'all    Wall 
Street,'    'the    whole    Stock    Ex- 
change.' 

55.  prodocet :  only  in  this  pas- 
sage ;     proclaims    loudly.  —  reci- 
nunt :  the  pupils  repeated  in  a  kind 
of  chant   the   words    pronounced 
slowly  {dictata)  by  the  teacher.  — 
senesque  :  a  humorous  addition  to 
the  picture  of  the  school  children. 

56.  Repeated    without    change 
from  Sat.   I,  6,  74.     There  are  a 
few  other  repetitions   of  lines  in 
Horace,  some  of  which  are  mere 
errors  in  the  Mss.     In  this  case, 


however,  the  point  of  the  compari- 
son of  business  men  to  school 
children  is  heightened  by  the 
quotation  ;  '  like  the  children  I  de- 
scribed once,  with  their  satchels 
and  slates  hanging  from  their 
arms.1  —  loculos  tabulamque  :  ac- 
cus.  of  the  part  with  suspensi. 

57.  The   four   nouns   are  care- 
fully chosen  and  arranged,  animus, 
ability,  is  balanced  by  mores,  char- 
acter, and   then  each  is  repeated 
in  a  more  specific  way  in  eloquence 
and  loyalty. 

58.  quadringentis :    sc.    milibus 
sestertium.      This    sum,    400,000 
sesterces,  was  the  rating  necessary 
to  enrollment  among  the  equites. 
—  sex  septem :  used  in  this  way, 
without     connective,     in     several 
other  places  (Ter.  Eun.  331,  Cic. 
Att.     10,    8,    6),    apparently    for 
phonetic  reasons.     No  other  car- 
dinal numbers  are  so  used. 

59-60.  The  full  verse  is  given 
by  the  Scholiast :  '  re'x  erit  qui 
recte  faciet,  qui  non  faciet  n6n 
erit,'  a  trochaic  septenarius,  sung 
by  boys  in  some  game. 

60-61.  The  underlying  thought 
is, '  in  this  song  of  children  at  play 


1, 1,61] 


HORATI 


nil  conscire  sibi,  nulla  pallescere  culpa. 
Roscia,  die  sodes,  melior  lex,  an  puerorum  est 
nenia,  quae  regnum  recte  facientibus  offert, 
et  maribus  Curiis  et  decantata  Camillis  ? 
65      Isne  tibi  melius  suadet  qui  rem  facias,  rem, 
si  possis,  recte,  si  non,  quocumque  modo  rem, 
ut  propius  spectes  lacrimosa  poemata  Pupi, 
an  qui  Fortunae  te  responsare  superbae 
liberum  et  erectum  praesens  hortatur  et  aptat  ? 


one  may  find  a  rule  of  life ;  up- 
right conduct  gives  secure  happi- 
ness.' Murns  aeneus  is  a  common 
figure  to  express  security  and  stabil- 
ity, here  in  contrast  to  the  troubles 
of  a  life  spent  in  the  pursuit  of 
money  or  position  (43-46).  The 
whole  of  vs.  61  is  nothing  but  an 
expansion  of  recte  facere.  —  con- 
scire :  absolute,  as  the  noun  con- 
scientia  is  occasionally.  — sibi :  not 
tibi,  because  the  words  are  a  maxim 
of  general  application.  The  line 
should  be  paraphrased,  rather  than 
rendered  literally. 

62.  Roscia    ...   lex:    the  law 
which  reserved  the  first  fourteen 
rows  behind  the  orchestra  for  the 
knights.     As  the  equites  were  in 
general  the  capitalists,  the  law  is 
taken  as  an   embodiment   of  the 
public  opinion  which  °jave  undue 
honor  to  wealth  (vs.  53). 

63.  nenia :  used  of  any  rhyme  or 
jingle  in  rhythm,  like  charms  and 
proverbs,  in  distinction  from  formal 
poetry.     Here  with  intention,   to 
contrast  the  song  of  boys  at  play 
with  the  law  of  the  Roman  people. 


64.  maribus :  manly.  As  these 
heroes  of  the  good  old  times  sang 
the  verse  when  they  were  boys, 
so  they  acted  upon  the  principle 
when  they  became  men.  Curius 
and  Camillus  are  named  together 
in  Carm.  i,  12,  41  f.  as  products 
of  saeva  paupertas. 

65-66.  rem  .  .  .  rem  .  .  .  rem: 
the  repetition  is  made  more  em- 
phatic by  the  position  of  the 
monosyllable  at  the  end  of  the 
hexameter.  —  facias :  in  parataxis 
with  suadet  to  be  supplied  as  the 
verb  for  qui ;  it  represents  an  in- 
dependent fac. 

67.  propius :    i.e.,    '  become    a 
knight  by  reason  of  your  money 
and  sit  in  one  of  the  front  rows/  — 
Pupi:   unknown.     The  Scholiast 
quotes  a  couplet  in  which  Pupi  us 
is  supposed  to  pride  himself  upon 
his  success  in  moving  his  audience 
to  tears.    But  lacrimosa  is  of  course 
ironical,  like  all  the  rest  of  the  line. 

68.  responsare  :  defy,  as  in  Sat. 
2,  7,  85,  103. 

69.  praesens :    most  frequently 
used  of  a  god  who  is  present  in 


EPISTVLAE 


»,  77 


70      Quod  si  me  populus  Romanus  forte  roget,  cur 
non,  ut  porticibus,  sic  iudiciis  fruar  isdem, 
nee  sequar  aut  fugiam  quae  diligit  ipse  vel  odit, 
olim  quod  vulpes  aegroto  cauta  leoni 
respondit  referam  :  '  Quia  me  vestigia  terrent, 

75      omnia  te  adversum  spectantia,  nulla  retrorsum.' 

Belua  multorum  est  capitum.     Nam  quid  sequar  aut 

quern  ? 
Pars  hominum  gestit  conducere  publica ;  sunt  qui 


person  to  give  help.  The  use  here 
suggests  that  the  help  of  the  moral 
philosopher  is  like  that  of  a  divinity. 
70-93.  <  If  I  am  asked  why  I 
advocate  views  so  opposed  to  the 
popular  standards,  my  answer  is 
that  there  is  no  common  standard ; 
men  are  utterly  at  variance  with 
each  other  and  inconsistent  with 
themselves.' 

70.  Romanus :    not  in  contrast 
to  the  Greek,  but  'the  great  Ro- 
man people,  my  countrymen,  with 
whom    I    might    be    expected    to 
agree.'     Cf.  fives,  53,  and  Roscia 
le.v,  62. 

71.  porticibus  :  the  public  colon- 
nades, where  men  met  for  talk  ;  cf. 
Sat.  1,4,  133,  cum  lectulns  aut  me 
porticns  excepit.     This  is  a  figura- 
tive way  of  saying  'since  I  live  in 
the  same  city,  in  the  same  society.' 

72.  An    expansion    of    indiciis 
fruar  isdem.  —  sequar :  =  diligit. 
—  fugiam :  =  odit.    The  variety  of 
expression   prepares   the  way  for 
vs.  76. 

73 .  olim :  once,  once  upon  a  time, 


as  often  (e.g.,  Sat.  2,  6,  79)  to 
introduce  a  fable.  The  story  which 
follows  is  not  in  Phaedrus,  but  was 
one  of  Aesop's  fables  and  had  been 
used  by  Lucilius  (30,  80  ff.  M.). 
The  moral  is  that  one  who  gives 
up  his  own  judgment  and  adopts 
the  popular  views  surrenders  his 
independence  beyond  recovery. 

76.  belua  .  .  .  capitum  :  the  fig- 
ure was  proverbial  and  has  passed 
over  through  Horace  into  modern 
literature.     There  is  a  change  of 
argument  here,  from  the  danger 
of  losing  one's  independence   to 
the  new  argument  drawn  from  the 
confusing  variety  in  public  opinion 
(76-80),  but  the  figure  of  the  beast 
of  many  heads  is  suggested  by  the 
previous  comparison  of  the  people 
to  a  lion. 

77.  conducere  publica :   to  take 
government  contracts.     This  was 
one  of  the  chief  uses  of  large  capi- 
tal in   Rome,  but  it  was   looked 
upon  with  some  contempt,  as  is 
shown  by  its  association  here  with 
legacy  hunting  and  usury. 


25 


1. 1, 78] 


HORATI 


crustis  et  pomis  viduas  venentur  avaras, 
excipiantque  senes  quos  in  vivaria  mittent; 

80      multis  occulto  crescit  res  faenore.     Verum 
esto  aliis  alios  rebus  studiisque  teneri : 
idem  eadem  possunt  horam  durare  probantes  ? 
'  Nullus  in  orbe  sinus  Bais  praelucet  amoenis' 
si  dixit  dives,  lacus  et  mare  sentit  amorem 

85      festinantis  heri ;  cui  si  vitiosa  libido 

fecerit  auspicium,  '  Cras  ferramenta  Teanura 
tolletis,  fabri.'     Lectus  genialis  in  aula  est: 
nil  ait  esse  prius,  melius  nil  caelibe  vita : 
si  non  est,  iurat  bene  solis  esse  maritis. 


78-79.  The  practice  of  seeking 
for  legacies  from  rich  and  childless 
old  people  is  the  subject  of  Sat.  2, 
5,  where  illustrations  of  these  lines 
can  be  found ;  crust  Is  et  pomis, 
vs.  12]  viduas,  84-88;  vivaria, 

44- 

80.  occulto :     the    context    re- 
quires that  this  should  mean  secret 
and    therefore    discreditable,    be- 
cause the  loan  was  in  some  sense 
illegal  or  improper. 

81.  esto  .  .  .  teneri:  z'.e.,' pass- 
ing over  this  point  without  further 
argument ' ;  a  frequent  use  of  esto, 
Sat.  I,  6,  19;  2.  2,tjo. 

82.  idem:  nom.  plur.   'Can these 
same  persons,  who  are  so  at  vari- 
ance with  each  other,  be  consistent 
with  themselves  ?' 

83.  Bais :   a  fashionable  resort 
on  the  shore  of  Campania. 

84.  lacus  et  mare :  houses  were 
built  out  into  the  sea  or  into  the 
shallow  salt  water  pools,  like  the 


Lucrine  lake.     Cf.  esp.  Carm.  3, 

i,  33  ff- 

85.  vitiosa  libido  :  morbid  fancy, 
carrying  on  to  an  extreme  the  fig- 
ure suggested  in  amorem. 

86.  auspicium  :  gives  the  signal. 
Properly  auspicium  is  a  sign  sent 
by  the  gods,  but  to  the  capricious 
and   self-indulgent   man  his  own 
whim  is  as  good  as  a  sign  from 
heaven.  —  Teaman  :  an  inland  re- 
sort in  Campania ;  he  changes  in 
a  day  from    the   seashore  to  the 
mountains.    The  order  is  given  by 
the  master  to  the  workmen  who  are 
still  engaged  upon  the  unfinished 
villa  at  Baiae. 

87.  lectus    genialis:    the  mar- 
riage conch  which    stood   in    the 
atrium  in  honor  of  the  Genius  of 
the    family,   the   god    of  fruitful- 
ness. 

88.  prius,  melius :  better,  more 
desirable.     The  same  idea  is  also 
expressed  by  antiquius. 


26 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  i,  IOG 


90      Quo  teneam  voltus  mutantem  Protea  nodo  ? 
Quid  pauper  ?     Ride  :  mutat  cenacula,  lectos, 
balnea,  tonsores,  conducto  navigio  aeque 
nauseat  ac  locuples  quern  ducit  priva  triremis. 
Si  curatus  inaequali  tonsore  capillos 

95      occurri,  rides  ;  si  forte  subucula  pexae 

trita  subest  tunicae  vel  si  toga  dissidet  impar, 
rides  :  quid,  mea  cum  pugnat  sententia  secum, 
quod  petiit  spernit,  repetit  quod  nuper  omisit, 
aestuat  et  vitae  disconvenit  ordine  toto, 

ioo    diruit,  aedificat,  mutat  quadrata  rotundis  ? 


go.   Protea:  cf.  Sat.  2,  3,  71  ff. 

91-93.  'And  as  the  rich  man 
(84)  is  subject  to  his  whims,  so 
the  poor  man  in  his  small  way 
indulges  his  caprices.'  All  the 
details  are  intentionally  petty; 
cenacula,  lodgings,  is  a  parody 
upon  vss.  83-87,  the  lectos,  balnea, 
tonsores  are  the  cheap  luxuries 
of  the  poor,  and  the  poor  man, 
seasick  in  his  hired  boat,  is  an 
especially  keen  hit.  There  is  in 
these  lines  a  tone  of  sharpness 
not  usual  in  Horace  and  more 
like  the  bitterness  of  Juvenal's 
satire. 

94-108.  'These  and  other  like 
inconsistencies,  ridiculous  as  they 
are,  are  small  compared  to  the  in- 
consistencies of  judgment  from 
which  I  hope  to  save  myself  by 
philosophy.' 

94.  curatus  :  almost  a  technical 
term  of  attention  to  health  or  the 
toilet.  Cf.  Sat.  2,  5,  38,  pelliculam 
curare.  —  inaequali :  uneven,  a 


humorous  transfer  of  the  adj.  from 
the  work  to  the  workman. 

95-96.  subucula :  undertunic. 
The  inconsistency  is  between  the 
well-worn  undergarment,  from 
which  the  nap  has  been  rubbed 
off  (trita},  and  the  new  tunic  with 
long  and  fresh  nap  (pexae) .  — 
dissidet  impar :  sets  badly,  hangs 
unevenly ;  cf.  Sat.  i,  3,  31,  rusti- 
cius  tonso  toga  defluit.  The  care- 
ful creasing  of  that  part  of  the  toga 
which  hung  across  the  chest  was 
a  matter  of  importance  to  a  Roman 
who  wished  to  be  well  dressed. 

98-100.  The  list  of  moral  in- 
consistencies is  given  rapidly,  as 
if  they  had  only  to  be  named  in 
order  to  be  recognized  and  ac- 
knowledged. —  aestuat :  ebbs  and 
flows  like  the  tide.  —  diruit,  aedi- 
ficat :  i.e.,  is  guilty  of  the  same 
foolish  vacillation  that  was  de- 
scribed in  vss.  83-87.  —  quadrata 
rotundis :  a  proverbial  figure,  used 
of  making  a  meaningless  change. 


27 


i,  101] 


HORATI 


105 


Insanire  putas  sollemnia  me  neque  rides, 

nee  medici  credis  nee  curatoris  egere 

a-  praetore  dati,  rerum  tutela  mearum 

cum  sis  et  prave  sectum  stomacheris  ob  unguem 

de  te  pendentis,  te  respicientis  amici. 

Ad  sum  mam  :  sapiens  uno  minor  est  love,  dives, 

liber,  honoratus,  pulcher,  rex  denique  regum, 

praecipue  sanus,  nisi  cum  pituita  molesta  est. 


101.  'You  think  that  my  madness 
is  merely  the  usual  thing  —  not  re- 
markable at  all  —  and  do  not  laugh.' 
—  neque  rides:  recalling  ride  91, 
rides  95  and  97.     All  the  laughter 
that  external  incongruities  excite 
comes  to  an  end  when  the  incon- 
sistency is  in  the  moral  sphere. 

102.  medici, curatoris :  i.e., 'you 
do  not  see  that  this  is  real  insanity 
which  calls  for  the  care  of  a  physi- 
cian and    the   appointment   of  a 
guardian.' 

103.  tutela:   this   is   an   inten- 
tional reminder  of  Carm.  i,  I,  2, 
o  et  praesidium    et  dulce   decus 
tneiim.  —  prave  sectum :  cf.  Epist. 
i,   7,   51.  —  stomacheris:    not    of 
serious  anger,  but  humorously  and 
with  recognition   of  the   friendly 
concern  which  causes  the  annoy- 
ance of  Maecenas.     '  Though  you 
are  so  anxious  toiiave  me  avoid 
even  the  most  trifling  carelessness.' 


105.  The  line  is  an  explicit  and 
intentional  profession  of  friendship, 
to  guard  against  the  possibility 
that  the  preceding  reproaches 
(94-104)  addressed  directly  to 
Maecenas  might  be  taken  too 
seriously  by  any  reader. 

106-108.  Cf.  the  abrupt  and 
humorous  conclusion  of  Sat.  i,  i  ; 

1,  3;  i,  4;  i,   6.     On   the   Stoic 
paradox   which   is   here  ridiculed 
cf.  Sat.  i,  3,  124  ff. —  sanus  :  this, 
in  contrast  to  the   insania  of  all 
other  men,  was  the  quality  which 
the    Stoic    philosopher  especially 
claimed  as  his  own.     It  is  the  sub- 
ject of  the  longest  of  the  Satires, 

2,  3.     But   Horace,  accepting  its 
correctness  on   the   philosophical 
side,  turns  it  into  a  joke  by  taking 
it  in  a  physical  sense  ;  '  healthy  — 
except  for  an  occasional  cold  in 
the  head.' 


2 

This  letter  is  addressed  to  a  certain  Lollius  Maximus,  who  is  also 
addressed  in  Epist.  I,  18.  From  the  latter,  written  in  20  B.C.,  it  ap- 
pears that  he  had  served  as  a  soldier  in  the  war  against  the  Cantabri, 

28 


EPISTVLAE  [i,  2,  2 

25-24.  This  letter  was  therefore  written  somewhere  between  24 
and  20. 

Beyond  this  nothing  is  known  of  the  young  man,  but  he  may  well 
have  been  a  relative  of  the  distinguished  M.  Lollius  to  whom  Carm.  4, 
9,  is  addressed. 

'  My  dear  young  friend,  I  have  just  been  re-reading  Homer  and 
am  struck  with  the  wealth  of  illustration  of  philosophic  doctrines 
in  his  poems.  He  is  really  better  than  the  philosophers  themselves. 
Just  consider  the  debate  between  Antenor  and  Paris  or  the  quar- 
rel between  the  two  chiefs  of  the  Greeks.  The  follies  of  kings  could 
not  be  better  shown.  And  Ulysses,  in  the  Odyssey,  is  as  good  as 
a  Stoic  ;  recall  the  description  of  him  in  the  opening  of  the  poem. 
And  you  and  I  are  there,  too,  in  the  picture  of  the  easy-going  Phaea- 
cians. 

'  But  don't  be  too  easy-going ;  don't  postpone  too  long  the  beginning 
of  serious  philosophic  living.  There  are  temptations  everywhere.  Do 
not  be  like  the  men  who  hope  to  find  happiness  in  their  possessions, 
instead  of  cleansing  their  own  hearts.  Avoid  pleasure,  love  of  money, 
envy,  anger  ;  especially  anger.  Begin  early  to  train  yourself.  But 
don't  expect  me  to  be  your  companion  in  the  path  of  reform  ;  I  am 
middle-aged  and  I  go  my  own  sober  way.' 

The  tone  of  the  letter  is  half  serious,  half  light,  as  suits  an  older 
man's  advice  to  a  younger  friend.  It  is  probable  that  the  advice  has 
some  personal  applications  which  can  no  longer  be  understood,  but  the 
general  tenor  is  impersonal ;  begin  in  youth  to  train  yourself  to  virtue. 

Troiani  belli  scriptorem,  Maxime  Lolti, 
dum  tu  declamas  Romae,  Praeneste  relegi ; 

1.  Maxime  :   the  family  name  schools  of  rhetoric.      The  sense 
is  not  infrequently  put  before  the  therefore  is  '  while  you  at  Rome 
gentile  name,  e.g.,  Carm.  2,  2,  3,  are    studying    Homer    from    the 
Crispe  Sallusti.  rhetorical    point    of    view,    I    at 

2.  declamas  :    with  scriptorem  Praeneste    have    been   re-reading 
as  a  cognate  accus.,  meaning  to  him  and  find  him  a  philosopher.' 
write    and    deliver    declamations  —  Praeneste  :     a   summer   resort 
based     upon     situations     in     the  among  the  mountains.     The  men- 
Homeric  poems,  e.g.,  the  prayer  tion  of  the  two  towns  where  the 
of  Priam  to  Achilles  for  the  return  writer  and  the  recipient  were  gives 
of  the  body  of  Hector.     This  was  the  epistle  a  more  distinct  letter 
a  very   common   practice   in   the  form. 

29 


«,  2,  3l 


HORATI 


qui  quid  sit  pulchrum,  quid    turpe,  quid    utile, 

non, 

planius  ac  melius  Chrysippo  et  Crantore  dicit. 
Cur  ita  crediderim,  nisi  quid  te  detinet,  audi. 
Fabula,  qua  Paridis  propter  narratur  amorem 
Graecia  barbariae  lento  collisa  duello, 
stultorum  regum  et  populorum  continet  aestus, 
Antenor  censet  belli  praecidere  causam  : 
quid  Paris  ?     Vt  salvus  regnet  vivatque  beatus 
cogi  posse  negat.     Nestor  componere  litis 


quid 


3.  pulchrum,  turpe,  utile  :    the 
technical    terms    of    ethical    phi- 
losophy, which  taken  together  de- 
fine the  siiinmiitn  bonum. 

4.  planius :    more  clearly,   and 
therefore    better,    than    any   phi- 
losopher. —  Chrysippo  :  the  Stoic, 
mentioned  sever  )1  times  by  Horace. 
—  Crantore  :     a     leader    of    the 
Academy. 

5  detinet :  draws  you  away, 
distracts  you  from  giving  me  your 
undivided  attention. 

6-31.  'The  Iliad  gives  us  pic- 
tures of  the  follies  of  mankind, 
the  Odyssey  a  picture  of  a  prac- 
tical philosopher;  and  we  may 
even  find  our  own  portraits  there.' 

7.  Graecia  .  .  .  oollisa  :  the  fre- 
quent construction  of  noun  with 
participle  instead  of  a  gen.  with  an 
abstract  noun.  —  barbariae :  Phry- 
gians, who  did  not  speak  Greek, 
but  with  a  suggestion  of  the  mod- 
ern meaning.  —  lento  :  the  ten 
years'  war.  —  duello  :  this  old 
form  for  betto  is  used  several  times 


by    Horace,   perhaps   with    some 
epic  tone. 

8.  stultorum  :   i.e.,   not  philos- 
ophers.—  aestus:    passions;    not 
from  the  ebb  and  flow  of  the  tide, 
as  in  Epist.  I,  i,  99,  but  from  the 
irregular  tossing  of  waves,  making 
a  slight  contrast  with    the  literal 
meaning  of  continet. 

9.  Antenor:  //.  7,  347  ff.  — cen- 
set :  in  the  formal  sense,  almost  like 
the  English  moves.  —  This  line  is 
merely  preliminary  to  vs.  10,  which 
gives    the    example    of  stultitia; 
'  when  Antenor  gives  good  advice, 
Paris  refuses  to   consider  it,  and 
when  Nestor  tries  toheal  the  breach 
between    Achilles   and   Agamem- 
non, their  foolish  passions  prevent.' 

10.  salvus  .  .  .  beatus  :  this  is 
what  the  giving  up  of  Helen  would 
really    bring    about.       But    Paris 
cannot  even  be  compelled,  much 
less  persuaded,  to   take  the   sen- 
sible course. 

11.  Nestor:    //.   I,   247  ff.  and 
9,96ff. 


3° 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  2,  25 


inter  Pelid'en  festinat  et  inter  Atriden  ; 

hunc  amor,  ira  quidem  communiter  urit  utrumque, 

Quicquid  delirant  reges,  plectuntur  Achivi. 
15      Seditione,  dolis,  scelere,  atque  libidine  et  ira, 

Iliacos  intra  muros  peccatur  et  extra. 

Rursus,  quid  virtus  et  quid  sapientia  possit, 

utile  proposuit  nobis  exemplar  Vlixen  ; 

qui,  domitor  Troiae,  multorum  providus  urbes 
20      et  mores  hominum  inspexit,  latumque  per  aequor, 

dum  sibi,  dum  sociis  reditum  parat,  aspera  multa 

pertulit,  adversis  rerum  immersabilis  undis. 

Sirenum  voces  et  Circae  pocula  nosti ; 

quae  si  cum  sociis  stultus  cupidusque  bibisset, 
25      sub  domina  meretrice  fuisset  turpis  et  excors 


12.  inter  .  .  .  et  inter:     so   in 
Sat.    1,7,    1 1  ;    an    example   of 
slightly  illogical  colloquialism. 

13.  hunc  :  Agamemnon,  who  in 
//.   i,  113  speaks  of  his  love  for 
Chryseis.       In    fact,    both    were 
moved  by  the  same  motives,  amor 
and    ira,    but    as    the   wrath    of 
Achilles  is  the  announced  subject 
of  the  Iliad,  only  this  passion  is 
attributed  to  him. 

14-16.  '  Every  folly  of  the  chiefs 
involves  the  people,  too,  and  it  is 
all  a  mad  world,  within  Troy  and 
without.'  A  concise  summary  of 
the  meaning  of  vss.  9-13,  repeat- 
ing the  statement  of  vs.  8. 

17.  rursus  :  on  the  other  hand, 
as  vs.  3  had  spoken  of  quid pul- 
chrum,  quid  utile,  as  well  as  the 
opposite. 

19-22.   A    paraphrase    of    the 


first  lines  of  the  Odyssey.  — 
domitor  Troiae  :  this  is  the  stand- 
ing Roman  tradition  from  Plautus 
down.  —  providus  .  .  .  inspexit : 
tSei/  KOL  vdov  eyvw.  —  immersabilis  : 
an  addition  to  the  Homeric  de- 
scription ;  the  Stoic  phrase  (cf. 
Epist.  i,  i,  1 6,  mersor  civilibus 
nndis)  suggests  '  like  a  true  Stoic 
philosopher.' 

23.  Sirenum:  Od.  u,  39  ff. — 
Circae  pocula :  Od.  i  o,  136  ff. 

24.  stultus    cupidusqu? :     with 
foolish  eagerness;  he  did  in  fact 
drink,  but  not  until  he  had  taken  the 
antidote  and  not,  therefore,  stultus. 

25.  turpis :    in  the  form  of  an 
animal,  losing  his    human   form. 
Cf.  Sat.  i,  3,  100,  mutum  et  turpe 
pecus. — et:  connects  the  verbs; 
turpis  goes  \vithfmsset,  and  excors 
with  vixisset. 


It  2,  26] 


HOKAT1 


vixisset  canis  immundus  vcl  arnica  luto  sus. 
Nos  numerus  sumus  et  fruges  consumere  nati, 
sponsi  Penelopae  nebulones,  Alcinoique 
in  cute  curanda  plus  aequo  operata  iuventus, 
30     cui  pulchrum  fuit  in  medios  dormire  dies  et 

ad  strepitum  citharae  cessantem  ducere  somnum. 
Vt  iugulent  hominem,  surgunt  de  nocte  latrones  ; 
ut  te  ipsum  serves,  non  expergisceris  ?     Atqui 
si  noles  sanus,  curres  hydropicus ;  et  ni 


26.  canis :  not  in  the  Homeric 
story.     But  the  legend  easily  took 
various  forms. 

27-31.  'We  too  may  find  our 
prototypes  there,  among  the  com- 
mon people,  of  course,  and  the 
easy-going.' 

27.  numerus :      mere    ciphers. 
opifytos  is  used  in  this  sense,  but 
numerus    apparently    only    here. 
The  rest  of  the  line  is  also  Greek, 
o'i  apovpr)<i  Kapwov  ISovertv,  '  mere 
consumers  of  the  fruits  of  the  earth.' 

28.  sponsi :    suitors.      Strictly, 
they   were   prod,   but    all    these 
words  of  relation,  sponstts,  sponsa, 
gener,  socer,  are   loosely  used. — 
nebulones :  here  as  an  adj.,  waste- 
ful. —  Alcinoi :  king  of  the  Phaea- 
cians,  Od.  8,  1 1  and  249  f. 

29.  cute  curanda  :  cf.  esp.  pelli- 
culam  curare,  Sat.  2,   5,  38  and 
membra,    corpora    curare.  —  ope- 
rata :  with  intentional  irony  ;  their 
only  labors  are  the  labors  of  the 
toilet. 

30-31.  pulchrum:  the  philo- 
sophical term ;  they  found  their 
summit m  bontun  in  sleeping  late. 


—  These  details  are  not  in  Homer 
nor  is  the  character  of  the  Phaea- 
cians    so    entirely    self-indulgent. 
But  on  the  basis  of  a  few  lines, 
esp.  Od.    8,  248  f.,  they  had  be- 
come types  of  ease  and  luxury  in 
philosophical  writings,  and  Horace 
is  here  following  the  later  inter- 
pretation,  rather   than    the   pure 
Homeric  description. 

32  ff.  The  following  lines,  al- 
most to  the  end  of  the  epistle, 
contain  a  series  of  exhortations  in 
philosophical  form.  There  is  no 
real  relation  between  them  and  the 
Homeric  allusions,  but  the  two 
parts  are  connected  by  the  exhor- 
tation to  energetic  living  which  is 
itself  suggested  by  the  slothfulness 
of  the  Phaeacians. 

33.  serves:  />.,' if  robbers  will 
get  up  early  to  take  life,  will  you 
not  do  it  to  save  your  own  soul  ? ' 

—  expergisceris :  with  a  literal  ref- 
erence backward,  but  also  in  the 
figurative  sense. 

34.  noles  :  sc.  currere.    This  is 
one  of  the  forms  of  exercise  pre- 
scribed for  dropsy. 


32' 


EPISTVLAE 


LI-  2,44 


35      posces  ante  diem  librum  cum  lumine,  si  non 
intendes  animum  studiis  et  rebus  honestis, 
invidia  vel  amore  vigil  torquebere.     Nam  cur 
quae  laedunt  oculum  festinas  demere ;  si  quid 
est  animum,  differs  curandi  tempus  in  annum  ? 

40      Dimidium  facti  qui  coepit  habet :  sapere  aude  : 

incipe.     Qui  recte  vivendi  prorogat  horam, 
.    rusticus  exspectat  dum  defluat  amnis;  at  ille 
labitur  et  labetur  in  omne  volubilis  aevum. 
Quaeritur  argentum  puerisque  beata  creandis 


35-36-  The  two  meanings,  lit- 
eral and  figurative,  are  intention- 
ally run  together ;  '  unless  you 
waken  early  to  work,  you  will  find 
yourself  sleepless  as  a  result  of 
your  self-indulgence,  and  unless 
you  study  philosophy,  you  will 
suffer  from  the  passions  that  phi- 
losophy would  have  cured.'  — 
posces:  so  Epist.  2,  i,  112  f., 
prius  orto  sole  vigil  calamum  et 
chartas  et  scrinia  posco.  The 
habit  of  reading  or  writing  in  the 
early  morning,  reclining  on  a 
couch,  was  general.  —  rebus  ho- 
nestis :  i.e.,  philosophy,  which  is 
alluded  to  with  increasing  distinct- 
ness in  curandi  39,  sapere  40,  and 
recte  vivendi  41. 

37.  cur :  with  both  verbs,  festi- 
nas  and  differs;  'why  is  it  that 
you  hasten  .  .  .  and  yet  post- 
pone .  .  .  ?' 

39.  est :  from  edo. 

40.  dimidium  .  .  .  habet :  a  fa- 
miliar  proverb;    'well    begun    is 
half  done.' 

HOR.  El'.  —  3  23 


42.  rusticus:    i.e.,   'is  like  the 
countryman   who  .  .  .  ,'   with    the 
condensed  comparison  so  frequent 
in  Horace.     The  story  is  not  other- 
wise known  to  us,  but  the   brief 
form  of  the  allusion  presupposes  a 
knowledge  of  it  on  the  part  of  the 
readers.  —  ille  :  amnis. 

43.  The  repetition  of  the  letter 
/,  the  feminine  caesura,  and  the 
rapid  movement  of  the  line  are  in- 
tentional.    Cf.  Epod.  16,  48,  levis 
crepante  lyinpha  desilit  pede. 

44.  From  this  point  the  exhor- 
tations become  more  specific,  be- 
ginning, as  always  in  Horace,  with 
exhortations    addressed    to    men 
of   wealth    (44-54).  —  quaeritur: 
emphatic  ;      '  men      are      always 
seeking.'  —  beata:     rich]  dotata. 
—  creandis  :  the  formula  of  mar- 
riage contract  contained  the  words 
liberorum  quaerundorum  causa  as 
expressing  the  legitimate  object  of 
marriage,  the  founding  of  a  fam- 
ily.     The  insertion  of  beata  into 
the  phrase  is  intentional  irony. 


»  45] 


HORATI 


45      uxor  et  incultae  pacantur  vomere  silvae ; 

quod  satis  est  cui  contingit,  nihil  amplius  optet. 
Non  domus  et  fundus,  non  aeris  acervus  et  auri 
aegroto  domini  deduxit  corpore  febris, 
non  animo  curas ;  valeat  possessor  oportet, 

50      si  comportatis  rebus  bene  cogitat  uti. 

Qui  cupit  aut  metuit,  iuvat  ilium  sic  domus  et  res, 
ut  lippum  pictae  tabulae,  fomenta  podagram, 
auriculas  citharae  collecta  sorde  dolentes. 
Sincerum  est  nisi  vas,  quodcumque  infundis  acescit. 


45.  incultae  .  .  .  silvae :  merely 
a  vivid  mention  of  one  form  of 
wealth,  like  domus  et  fundus,  47. 
Cf.  also  Carm.  i,  31,  7-10. 

46.  The  apodosis  of  44-45,  in 
paratactic  form.     For  the  thought 
cf.  Sat.  i,  I,  50,  62  ff.,  92  ff. 

48.  deduxit  :  perfect  tense  of 
"  an  action  often  done,  or  [with  a 
negative,  as  here]  never  done  " ; 
Lane,  §  1611.  '  has  never  removed 
the  fevers  from  the  body.'  The 
two  parts  of  this  sentence  also, 
like  44-46,  are  in  paratactic 
relation.  The  thought  is,  'as 
they  have  never  cured  bodily 
ills,  so  they  have  never  cured  the 
soul.' 

49-50.  'The  owner  of  all  this 
wealth  must  first  be  well,  must 
first  cure  himself  of  his  passions, 
if  he  hopes  to  enjoy  his  property.' 

—  valeat  .  .  .  oportet:    parataxis. 

—  bene:  with  uti.  —  The  thought 
is  expressed  at  greater  length  in 
Sat.  2,  3.  104-120. 

St.    cupit   aut    metuit:    i.e.,   is 


under  the  dominion  of  the   pas- 
sions. —  sic  ut :  no  more  .  .  .  than. 

52.  lippum:    this   disease,   fre- 
quently   referred    to    in    Horace, 
would  not  actually  blind  the  vic- 
tim, but  would  render  the  use  of 
his  eyes  so  painful  that  he  could 
not     enjoy    the    finest    painting. 
—  fomenta :  not  poultices  to  cure 
the  gout,  but  warm  wrappings  or 
foot  muffs   used  by  the  luxurious 
(Sen.  de  Provid.  4,  9 ;    de   Vita 
Beat.  1 1 ) .    But  a  sufferer  from  the 
acute  pains  of  gout  would  get  no 
pleasure  from  them. 

53.  collecta  sorde :   with  dolen- 
tes. 

54.  This  summarizes  the  argu- 
ments of  44  ff.,  esp.  that  of  49-50, 
in  a  single  condensed  comparison  ; 
'the    man,    I    say,   must   first   be 
sound    himself  in   order   to   find 
his  possessions  sweet  to  him,  as 
a  jar  must  be  clean  if  it  is  to  keep 
sweet  the  wine  that  is  poured  into 
it.1     It  will  be  seen  that  this  treat- 
ment of  the  familiar  theme  is  more 


EPISTVLAE 


I,  2,  68J 


55      Sperne  voluptates  ;  nocet  empta  dolore  voluptas. 
Semper  avarus  eget ;  certum  voto  pete  finem. 
Invidus  alterius  macrescit  rebus  opimis ; 
invidia  Siculi  non  invenere  tyranni 
maius  tormentum.     Qui  non  moderabitur  irae, 

60      infectum  volet  esse  dolor  quod  suaserit  et  mens, 
dum  poenas  odio  per  vim  festinat  inulto. 
Ira  furor  brevis  est:  animum  rege,  qui  nisi  paret, 
imperat;  hunc  frenis,  hunc  tu  compesce  catena. 
Fingit  equum  tenera  docilem  cervice  magister 

65      ire  viam  qua  monstret  eques;  venaticus  ex  quo 
tempore  cervinam  pellem  latravit  in  aula, 
militat  in  silvis  catulus.     Nunc  adbibe  puro 
pectore  verba  puer,  nunc  te  melioribus  offer. 


mature  and  more  profound  than 
the  earlier  treatment  in  Sat.  i,  i 
or  2,  3. 

55-63.  Briet  apothegms  on 
pleasure,  avarice,  envy,  and  anger. 

56.  certum  :  definite,  fixed,  since 
the  great  danger  is  that  the  avarus 
will  never  know  quod  satis  est. 
—  voto :  to  the  desires,  which 
are  expressed  as  solemnly  as  a 
vow. 

58.  Siculi  .  .  .  tyranni  :  their 
cruelty  and  their  ingenuity  in  in- 
venting tortures  had  become  pro- 
verbial. 

60.  infectum  volet :  i.e.,  '  shall 
often  have  occasion  to  wish  that 
he  could  undo  .  .  .'  —  dolor  et 
mens :  '  anger  (mens)  roused  by 
a  sense  of  injury  (dolor) .'  —  odio 
.  .  .  inulto :  ;  for  his  unsatisfied 
hatred.' 


62.  brevis:  while  it  lasts;  the 
emphasis  is  upon  furor,  a  raging 
madness. 

63.  frenis  :  anticipating  the  fig- 
ure of  the  horse.  —  catena  :    an- 
ticipating the  comparison  with  the 
hound. 

64.  tenera    docilem :     the    em- 
phatic words.      Training    should 
begin  early. 

65-66.  ex  quo  tempore :  i.e.,  his 
training  is  begun  in  the  courtyard, 
as  in  a  school.  The  hound  was 
trained  by  means  of  a  stuffed  figure 
of  a  deer,  which  he  was  taught  to 
bark  at. 

67-68.  nunc,  puer,  nunc :  empha- 
sizing in  its  direct  application  to 
Lollius  the  truth  which  had  been 
set  forth  in  figures,  that  youth  is 
the  time  to  learn.  —  melioribus : 
cf.  Epist.  i,  i,  48,  meliori  credere, 


35 


I,  2,  69]  HORATI 

Quo  semel  est  imbuta  recens  servabit  odorem 
70      testa  diu.     Quodsi  cessas  aut  strenuus  anteis, 
nee  tardum  opperior  nee  praecedentibus  insto. 

of  acknowledging  the  authority  of  70-71.    The     frequent     jesting 

the  philosopher.  close,  with  humorous  abruptness. 

69.   recens  :  continuing  the  idea  '  Such  is  my  advice.     Take  it  and 

of  tenera,  catulus,  puer.     For  the  go  your  way.     But,  as  for  me,  I 

general  thought  cf.  Carm.  i,  20,2,  am  middle-aged  and  shall  neither 

Graeca  quod  ego  ipse  testa  con-  wait  for  you,  if  you  are  slow,  nor 

ditum  levi,  which  refers  to  the  fact  press  after  you,  if  you  hurry  on . .  • ' 
that  the  jar  kept  the  flavor  of  the 
Greek  wine. 


The  date  is  fixed  by  the  first  lines.  In  the  year  20  Tiberius  went  to 
the  East  as  the  personal  representative  of  Augustus,  taking  with  him, 
as  was  usual  on  such  occasions,  a  considerable  retinue.  Among  those 
who  accompanied  him  were  several  young  men  interested  in  literature, 
as  was  Tiberius  himself. 

Julius  Florus,  to  whom  the  letter  is  addressed,  is  the  same  person  to 
whom  Epist.  2,  2  is  dedicated.  Both  letters  are  evidence  of  his  friend- 
ship with  Tiberius,  as  of  his  interest  in  literature,  but  beyond  this 
nothing  is  known  with  certainty  of  him. 

'  I  am  anxious  to  know,  my  dear  Florus,  where  you  and  your  com- 
panions are.  In  Thrace  ?  Or  on  the  Hellespont  ?  Or  already  in 
Asia  ?  And  what  are  you  doing  ?  Who  has  undertaken  the  epic  'on 
Augustus  ?  How  is  Titius,  my  Pindaric  hero  ?  Or  has  he  turned 
tragic  poet  ?  And  how  is  Celsus  ?  Remind  him  again  of  that  fable  of 
Aesop.  l(\.nd  what  are  you  undertaking  ?  I  expect  great  things  of  you, 
whatever  line  you  choose  to  follow.  If  only  you  would  drop  some  of 
your  ambitions  and  turn  to  philosophy  !  This  —  as  I  am  telling  every- 
body nowadays  —  is  the  duty  of  us  all.  And,  speaking  of  duty,  have 
you  made  up  your  quarrel  with  Munatius  ?  I  hope  so,  for  I  think  too 
well  of  you  both  to  be  satisfied  with  anything  less  than  a  complete 
reconciliation.' 

This  Epistle  deserves  careful  study.  It  is,  on  the  one  hand,  a  per- 
fectly natural  letter,  expressing  the  interest  of  the  writer  in  his  corre- 
spondent, revealing  the  personality  of  both  and  the  friendly  relation 
between  them.  It  reads  like  a  letter  dashed  off  in  high  spirits,  full  of 

36 


EPISTVLAE 


friendly  banter,  and  yet  at  bottom  serious  enough.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  is  a  most  carefully  written  piece  of  literature,  artistic  in  expression 
and  in  the  transition  from  one  topic  to  another.  The  combination  of 
spontaneity  of  feeling  with  artistic  expression,  which  is  one  of  the 
charms  of  the  lyric  poetry  of  Catullus,  is  rarely  to  be  found  in  the  Odes. 
In  the  Satires  there  is  a  nearer  approach  to  it.  In  this  letter  it  is 
attained. 


lull  Flore,  quibus  terrarum  militet  oris 

Claudius,  Augusti  privignus,  scire  laboro. 

Thracane  vos  Hebrusque  nivali  compede  vinctus, 

an  freta  vicinas  inter  currentia  turres, 

an  pingues  Asiae  campi  collesque  morantur? 

Quid  studiosa  cohors  operum  struit  ?    Hoc  quoque  euro. 

Quis  sibi  res  gestas  Augusti  scribere  sumit  ? 


1.  terrarum:   the  plural  makes 
the   question    more    general ;    cf. 
ubi  terrarum.  —  militet:    he  was 
in  command  of  troops,  though  the 
mission  was  not  in  reality  a  cam- 
paign .  —  oris  :  distant  lands ;  or  a 
is  not  necessarily  a  seashore,  but 
any  edge;  cf.  'ends  of  the  earth.' 

2.  Claudius :  Tiberius  Claudius 
Nero,  the  stepson  and  successor  of 
Augustus,  not  yet  adopted  as  a  son. 
—  laboro :  so  Sat.  2,  8,  19,  nosse 
laboro-  repeated  in  euro,  vs.  6. 

3.  Thraca  :  the  form  Thracia  is 
later.     In  the  Odes  Horace  uses 
the  Greek   form   Thrace. — nivali 
.  .  .  vinctus :   this  fixes  the  time 
of  the  year.     But  compede  vinctus 
is  not  to  be  taken  quite  literally ; 
the  cold  of  Thrace  was  proverbial. 

4.  freta :  the  Hellespont,  on  op- 
posite  sides   of  which    stood,   in 
poetic  tradition,  the  towers  of  Hero 


and  Leander,  near  Sestos  and 
Abydos.  The  Hellespont  is  here 
less  than  a  mile  wide  (vicinas)  and 
the  current  runs  swiftly. 

6.  studiosa  cohors :  the  suite  of 
young     men     who     accompanied 
Tiberius,  as  Catullus  went  on  the 
staff   of    Memmius   to    Bithynia. 
Tiberius  was  himself  in  early  life 
interested    in   literature   and   was 
doubtless  inclined   to   follow  the 
example  of  Maecenas  and  Messala 
and  Augustus  in  the  patronage  of 
men   of    letters.  —  operum:    with 
quid;   in  this  context  necessarily 
works  of  literature. 

7.  sumit :    chooses,    takes   upon 
himself.     This  is  the  task  which 
had   more   than    once   been   sug- 
gested to  Horace   (cf.  Sat.  2,  i, 
10  ff.),  but  which  he  had  always 
declined  to  undertake.     There  is 
a  little  irony  in  sumit. 


37 


I.  3.  8J 


HORATI 


1C 


Bella  quis  et  paces  longum  diffundit  in  aevum  ? 

Quid  Titius,  Romana  brevi  venturus  in  ora, 

Pindarici  fontis  qui  non  expalluit  haustus, 

f astidire  lacus  et  rivos  ausus  apertos  ? 

Vt  valet  ?     Vt  meminit  nostri  ?     Fidibusne  Latinis 

Thebanos  aptare  modos  studet  auspice  musa, 

an  tragica  desaevit  et  ampullatur  in  arte  ? 


8.  diffundit :    of   the  extensive 
circulation  that  an  epic  poem  on 
Augustus    ought     to    merit.  —  in 
aevum :  such  a   poem   should   be 
good  enough  to  endure  for  all  time. 

9.  Titius :  unknown.     The  ac- 
counts in  the  Scholiasts  are  made 
up  from  the  text.  —  in  ora  :  so  in 
the  epitaph  attributed  to  Ennius, 
volito  per  ora   virum ;   '  soon  to 
be  famous  in  Rome.' 

10-11.  non  expalluit :  it  required 
a  certain  audacity  to  attempt  a 
Pindaric  ode  (cf.  Carm.  4,  2,  I, 
Pindarum  quisquis  studet  aemu- 
lari).  The  thought  is  repeated  in 
positive  form  in  ausus,  vs.  1 1.  For 
the  accus.  haustus  cf.  Carm.  3,  27, 
27,  fraudes  palluit.  —  The  con- 
trast between  the  draughts  from 
the  fountain  of  the  Muses  on  Heli- 
con and  the  waters  of  the  public 
pool  (/acus)  or  the  stream,  easy  of 
access  to  all  (apertos),  is  used  by 
Quintilian,  10,  I,  109,  non  enim 
pluvias,  ut  ait  Pindarus,  aquas 
colligit,  sed  vivo  gurgite  exundat, 
with  a  slightly  different  sense. 

13.  Thebanos  :  i.e.,  Pindaric.  — 
auspice  musa :  '  with  the  help  of 
the  Muses ' ;  the  sense  is  affected 


by  the  proximity  of  studet,  so  that 
it  means  '  hoping  for  the  blessing 
of  the  Muses.' 

14.  desaevit :  only  here  in  Hor- 
ace. The  word  is  coined  to  go 
with  ampullatur  and  to  express 
humorously,  because  it  is  coined, 
the  high  emotions  of  tragedy.  — 
ampullatur :  a  translation  of  ATJKU- 
0%a.  (cf.  A.  P.  97).  This  word, 
from  A^KU^OS,  ampulla,  a  flask,  was 
used  in  derision  of  the  tendency 
of  tragedy  to  run  into  bombast. 
The  figure  seems  to  be  taken  from 
the  hollow  humming  sound  made 
by  the  wind  in  the  neck  of  a  jar. 
—  It  is  certainly  impossible  to  take 
these  lines,  which  are  in  effect  a 
message  to  Titius,  quite  seriously ; 
the  phrasing  (non  expalluit,  ausus, 
auspice,  musa,  desaevit,  ampulla- 
tur) forbids  that  interpretation. 
But  neither  can  they  be  taken,  in 
so  friendly  a  letter  meant  for  pub- 
lication, as  mere  irony.  They  are 
the  friendly  banterings  of  an  older 
man  addressed  to  a  young  friend 
of  high  ambitions  and  they  are  at 
the  same  time  a  reminder  of  the 
writer's  disinclination  to  attempt 
either  tragedy  or  the  Pindaric  ode. 


•L 


EPISTVLAE  [i,  3,  25 

15      Quid  mihi  Celsus  agit  ?     Monitus  multumque  monen 

dus, 

privatas  ut  quaerat  opes  et  tangere  vitet 
scripta,  Palatinus  quaecumque  recepit  Apollo; 
ne,  si  forte  suas  repetitum  venerit  olim 
grex  avium  plumas,  moveat  cornicula  risum 

20      furtivis  nudata  coloribus.     Ipse  quid  audes  ? 

Quae  circumvolitas  agilis  thyma?     Non  tibi  parvum 
ingenium,  non  incultum  est  et  turpiter  hirtum  : 
seu  linguam  causis  acuis  seu  civica  iura 
respondere  paras  seu  condis  amabile  carmen, 
prima  feres  hederae  victricis  praemia.     Quodsi 


25 

15.  mihi:  an  excellent  example 
of  the  ethical  dative.  —  Celsus  : 
this  must  be  Celsus  Albinovanus, 
addressed  in  Epist,  I,  8  as  comes 
scribaque  Neronis.  —  monitus  :  al- 
ready, when  he  was  with  me  in 
Rome. 

16-17.  privatas :  explained  by 
the  rest  of  the  line ;  he  should  not 
imitate  the  great  and  well-known 
writers,  whose  works  were  already 
in  the  library  of  the  temple  of 
Apollo,  but  should  seek  after  some 
originality. 

i&-2o.  The  fable  of  the  bird 
that  dressed  itself  out  in  the 
feathers  of  other  birds,  Phaedrus 
1,3.  Horace  has  slightly  changed 
the  story  to  fit  his  purpose  here.  — 
olim :  sometime.  —  cornicula :  the 
diminutive  form  is  apparently  de- 
risive, the  poor  crow,  but  in  all 
fables  the  birds  and  animals  are 
changed  about  without  much  re- 
gard to  tradition  or  natural  history, 


and  cornicula  may  be  some  smaller 
bird  of  the  crow  family.  —  The 
bantering  tone  of  9-14  is  continued 
in  these  lines. 

20.  audes:  attempt;  used  abso- 
lutely the  word  suggests  more  of 
encouragement  and  less  of  raillery 
than  is   implied  in  fastidire  .  .  . 
ausus,  vs.  II. 

21.  thyma:    i.e.,    'from    what 
flowers  do  you  gather  honey  ? ' 

22.  turpiter  hirtum :    the  figure 
is  of  a  field  left  uncultivated  and 
therefore  ugly  with  rough-growing 
bushes. 

23-24.  causis:  as  pleader  in 
court,  as  orator.  —  iura  respon- 
dere :  as  iuris  consulttts,  like  Tre- 
batius  in  Sat.  2,  i.  —  carmen :  lyric 
poetry. 

25.  hederae:  cf.  Carm.  i,  i,  29, 
doctarum  hederae  praemia  fron- 
tium.  This  is  applicable  only  to 
the  last  of  the  three  forms  of 
literary  activity,  but  is  somewhat 


39 


f,  3.  26] 


HORATI 


frigida  curarum  fomenta  relinquere  posses, 

quo  te  caelestis^sapientia  duceret,  ires. 

Hoc  opus,  hoc  studium  parvi  properemus  et  ampli, 

si  patriae  volumus,  si  nobis  vivere  cari. 

Debes  hoc  etiam  rescribere,  sit  tibi  curae, 

quantae  conveniat,  Munatius.     An  male  sarta 

gratia  nequicquam  coit  et  rescinditur  ?     At  vos 


generalized  by prima  feres;  'you 
will  reach  the  first  rank,  you  will 
get  the  reward  of  the  ivy  wreath.' 

26-27.  fomenta:  not  like  the 
fomenta.  of  Epist.  i,  2,  52,  but 
bandages  to  be  kept  wet  with  cold 
water.  This  kind  of  water  cure 
was  used  by  Augustus  on  the 
advice  of  his  physician  (Sueton. 
Aug.  81)  and  was  at  this  time  in 
fashion. — curarum:  gen.  of  defi- 
nition (Lane,  §  1255)  or  material, 
like  hederae  praemia,  vs.  25.  Cf. 
Cic.  de  Fin.  2,  29,  95,  patientiae, 
/ortitudinis  foment  is  dolor  miti- 
gari  solet.  The  sense  is,  '  if  you 
could  bring  yourself  to  give  up 
the  practice  of  treating  your  soul 
with  the  cold-water  bandages  that 
yo^r  anxieties  wrap  around  you, 
you  would  follow  where  philosophy 
would  lead.'  —  sapientia  :  this 
single  reference,  with  the  two  vss. 
which  follow,  is  the  only  con- 
nection between  the  epistle  and 
the  social  philosophy  which  is  the 
general  theme  of  this  Book. 

28.  parvi :  not  necessarily  a  ref- 
erence to  the  circumstances  of 
either  Florus  or  Horace  ;  cf.  Epist. 
I,  I,  25  f. 


29.  nobis . . .  cari :  not  different, 
in  spite  of  Lachmann's  dictum, 
from  nobis  amici  {Epist.  I,  18, 
101) ;  the  sense  is  'to  be  in 
harmony  with  others  and  with 
ourselves.' 

30-31.  debes:  i.e.,  'I  especially 
urge  you,'  'you  are  especially 
bound  to  tell  me.' — etiam:  the 
earlier  part  of  the  letter  contains 
many  questions,  direct  and  in- 
direct, which  call  for  a  reply  to 
the  epistle. — sit  tibi  curae:  indi- 
rect question  after  rescribere,  the 
second  member  being  expressed 
in  the  direct  form  an  .  .  .  rescin- 
ditur f  The  sense  is  'whether 
Munatius  is  as  dear  to  you  (curae 
dat.)  as  he  ought  to  be.'  —  Muna- 
tius :  another  of  the  young  men  in 
the  retinue  of  Tiberius,  with  whom 
Florus  had  quarreled.  The  quar- 
rel had  been  partly  made  up,  and 
Horace  is  asking  whether  the 
reconciliation  was  proving  per- 
manent. —  sarta :  transferred  figu-  * 
ratively  from  the  sewing  up-  of  a 
rent  in  cloth  or  a  wound;  cf. 
Engl.  '  patch  up  a  quarrel.1 

32.  coit:  also  a  surgical  term, 
used  of  the  healing  of  a  wound. 


EPISTVLAE 


seu  calidus  sanguis  seu  rerum  inscitia  vexat 
indomita  cervice  feros,  ubicumque  locorum 
35      vivitis  indigni  fraternum  rumpere  foedus, 
pascitur  in  vestrum  reditum  votiva  iuvenca. 


33.  rerum  inscitia :  i.e.,  '  inexpe- 
rience in  life,  in  affairs.'     As  cali- 
dus sanguis  would  be  to  a  young 
man  a  grateful  excuse,  so  rerum 
inscitia  is  just  the  form  of  reproach 
which  would  be  most  efficacious  in 
bringing  him  back  to  good  sense. 

34.  cervice:    like   young    cattle 
or  horses  that   have  not  yet  felt 
the  yoke. 

35-  vivitis  indigni :  to  be  taken 
together ;  indigni  is  the  important 
word  ;  '  you  ought  not,  wherever 
you  may  be  (cf.  vs.  i),  to  break  so 
close  a  friendship.' 

36.  '  Nor  shall  I  permit  it ;  fcr 
I  feel  affection  for  you  both,  and 


you   must    dine    together  at   my 
house  when  you  return.' 

Vss.  30-36  are  a  kind  of  post- 
script containing  the  only  wholly 
serious  thoughts  of  the  epistle. 
The  opening  word,  debes,  connects 
them  directly  with  the  preceding 
exhortation  to  philosophy,  and  the 
closing  invitation  to  both  to  dine 
with  him  is  a  most  graceful  expres- 
sion of  his  determination  to  see 
their  friendship  renewed.  The 
lines  are  scrupulously  neutral  and 
yet  there  is  not  a  word  that  could 
give  offense  to  Florus.  It  would 
not  be  possible  to  express  such 
thoughts  as  these  with  greater  tact. 


The  date  of  this  Epistle  cannot  be  definitely  fixed.  The  absence  of 
any  allusion  to  the  Odes  in  vs.  I  seems  to  require  a  date  before  23  B.C., 
when  the  Odes  were  published,  and  the  reference  to  a  favorable  judg- 
ment expressed  by  Tibullus  in  regard  to  the  Satires  points  to  a  still 
earlier  date.  Tibullus  returned  to  Rome  from  a  campaign  in  Aquitania 
in  27  and  may  then  for  the  first  time  have  read  the  Satires. 

Albius  Tibullus,  addressed  in  this  epistle  and  in  Carm.  I,  33,  the 
elegiac  poet,  was  a  younger  friend  of  Horace  and  a  man  of  attractive 
character.  He  was,  however,  of  a  somewhat  melancholy  temperament, 
and  this  note  of  general  invitation  and  inquiry  is  intended  to  cheer  him. 

'  What  are  you  doing  at  your  home  in  Pedum,  my  dear  Albius  ? 
Writing  or  philosophizing  in  silence  ?  The  gods  have  given  you  much  ; 
be  grateful  for  what  you  have.  If  you  will  make  me  a  visit,  you  will 
find  me  fat  and  cheerful,  as  an  Epicurean  ought  to  be.' 

4* 


1,4. 


HORATI 


Albi,  nostrorum  sermonum  candide  iudex, 
quid  nunc  te  dicam  facere  in  regione  Pedana  ? 
Scribere  quod  Cassi  Parmensis  opuscula  vincat, 
an  taciturn  silvas  inter  reptare  salubris, 
curantem  quicquid  dignum  sapiente  bonoque  est? 
Non  tu  corpus  eras  sine  pectore :  di  tibi  formam, 
di  tibi  divitias  dederunt  artemque  f  ruendi. 
Quid  voveat  dulci  nutricula  maius  alumno, 
qui  sapere  et  fari  possit  quae  sentiat,  et  cui 


r.  sermonum:  the  Satires. — 
candide  :  the  opposite,  niger,  is 
used  in  Sat.  r,  4,  85,  91,  and  can- 
didae  animae  of  Plotius  and  Va- 
rius  and  Vergil,  Sat.  I,  5,  41.  It 
means  fair  or  friendly,  rather  than 
'candid.' 

2.  dicam :  often  inserted  into  a 
question  in  colloquial  style  (quo 
te  dicam  ego  ire?  Plaut.  Cure. 
12,  unde  id  futurum  dicam  f  Ps. 
106)  to  increase  the  effect  of  un- 
certainty. Cf.  Engl.  'what  am  I 
to  suppose  that  you  are  doing  ? ' 
—  Pedana :  Tibullus  had  an  estate 
near  Pedum,  which  was  not  far 
from  Horace's  Sabine  farm. 

^3.  scribere :  sc.  dicatn  te.  — 
Cassi :  one  of  the  assassins  of 
Caesar,  called  Parmensis  here  to 
distinguish  him  from  Cassius 
Longinus.  He  was  put  to  death 
after  the  battle  of  Actium  by  the 
order  of  Augustus.  Of  his  lite- 
rary activity  almost  nothing  is 
known,  but  the  comparison  here 
Js  entirely  respectful.  —  opuscula  : 
the  word  could  properly  be  used 
of  elegies,  which  would  afford  a 


natural    standard    of   comparison 
for  the  poems  of  Tibullus 

4.  taciturn  . . .  reptare :  this  co- 
incides well  with  the  character  of 
Tibullus,  as  it  is  revealed  in  his 
elegies. 

5.  curantem:  i.e.,  intent  upon 
philosophy. 

6-7.  eras  :  the  tense  refers  back 
to  the  time  in  the  past  when  they 
were  together,  in  contrast  to  Hor- 
ace's present  state  (nunc,  vs.  2) 
of  ignorance.  '  You  were  not, 
when  I  knew  you.1  —  formam,  di- 
vitias, artem  :  the  blessings  of  tha 
fortunate,  expressed  in  somewhat 
conventional  terms,  and  made 
more  individual  and  specific  in 
vss.  9-11. 

8.  voveat :  wish,  pray  for.  — - 
maius  :  i.e.,  what  more,  what  be* 
sides  ;  the  standard  of  comparison 
is  implied  in  vss.  6-7. 

9-10.  qui:  i.e.,  'if  he  have  the 
power.  .  .  .'  —  Tibullus  had  all  the 
gifts  of  fortune  here  specified  — 
intelligence,  power  of  expression, 
attractiveness,  a  good  name  — 
except  perhaps  valetudo;  he  was 


. 


\ 


EPISTVLAE 


LI,  4,  16 


gratia,  fama,  valetudo  contingat  abunde, 
et  mundus  victus  non  deficiente  crumina  ? 
Inter  spem  curamque,  timores  inter  et  iras 
omnem  crede  diem  tibi  dilu^iisse  supremum  : 
grata  superveniet  quae  non  sperabitur  hora. 
Me  pinguem  et  nitidum  bene  curata  cute  vises, 
cum  ridere  voles,  Epicuri  de  grege  porcum. 


of  a  somewhat  melancholy  tem- 
perament, and  valetudo  is  added 
to  the  list  as  an  encouragement 
to  him  in  his  depression. — Vs. 
10  is  a  more  accurate  statement 
than  divitias  (7) ;  Tibullus  had 
an  estate  and  money  enough  for 
his  moderate  needs. 

12.  'In  the  ordinary  experi- 
ences of  life,  which  is  a  succes- 
sion of  varying  emotions.'  This 
description,  not  quite  in  Horace's 
usual  vein,  is  in  reality  meant  to 
be  encouraging  to  Tibullus  by 
reminding  him  that  there  is  noth- 
ing unusual  in  his  experience. 

13-14.  The  doctrine  of  the  Odes 
(I,  9,  9-16;  i,  ii  ;  2,  3;  2,  10). 
—  The  two  lines  are  in  paratactic 
relation  ;  '  accept  each  day  as  your 


5 

The  year  in  which  this  Epistle  was  written  is  left  entirely  uncertain, 
as  is  natural  in  an  invitation  to  dinner.  The  day  of  the  month  was 
Sept.  22d  (vs.  7). 

Torquatus  was  probably  of  the  family  of  the  Manlii  Torquati,  a  lawyer 
and  orator,  but  otherwise  unknown.  He  is  addressed  in  Carm.  4,  7, 
where  his  genus,  facundia,  and.  pietas  are  mentioned. 

The  letter  has  all  the  appearance  of  being  a  real  invitation  to  a  dinner 
that  actually  took  place  on  a  special  occasion.  Two  vhings  make  it 

43 


last;    (then)  you  will  be  grateful 
when  a  new  day  dawns.' 

15-16.  The  allusions  to  Hor- 
ace's own  cheerful  state  of  mind 
are  humorously  clothed  in  allu- 
sions to  his  physical  well-being. 
It  is  said  of  him  in  the  Vita  of 
Suetonius,  habitu  corporis  brevis 
fuit  atque  obesus.  —  cute :  cf., 
Epist.  i,  2,  29,  note.  —  vises:  i.e., 
'you  shall  find  me  in  the  best  of 
condition,  when  you  come  to  see 
me,  as  I  hope  you  will.'  —  grege: 
in  a  double  sense,  as  the  usual 
word  for  a  school  of  philosophy, 
and  with  reference  to  porcum.  • — 
porcum  :  often  used  as  a  term  of 
reproach  of  Epicureanism,  which 
the  Romans  generally  understood 
only  in  its  less  elevated  form. 


i,  5,  ij  IIORATI 

worthy  of  preservation  in  this  collection  of  letters.  It  is,  in  the  first 
place,  a  very  successful  illustration,  in  concrete  form,  of  a  fundamental 
principle  of  Horace's  social  philosophy.  He  is  here  in  the  position  of 
the  host  of  no  wealth  or  social  position  approaching  a  man  of  high 
standing  and  of  importance  in  the  world  of  affairs.  The  merit  of  the 
invitation  is  that  it  recognizes  these  differences,  but  with  such  openness 
and  humor  as  to  show  that  the  writer  did  not  overestimate  their  impor- 
tance and  was  confident  that  his  guest  also  did  not  give  them  undue 
weight.  As  host,  Horace  is  humorously  profuse  in  saying  that  he  is 
making  anxious  preparations  for  the  dinner  ;  as  a  friend,  he  takes  for 
granted  the  absolute  equality  which  is  the  only  foundation  for  friend- 
ship, without  either  servility  or  self-assertion.  To  this  subject  his  rela- 
tion to  Maecenas  had  led  Horace  to  give  careful  attention,  and  it  is  the 
theme  of  Sat.  i,  6  and  of  two  Epistles,  7  and  18,  of  this  Book. 

In  the  second  place,  the  occasion  gave  an  opportunity  for  the  recom- 
mendation of  that  philosophy  of  moderate  enjoyment  of  pleasure  to 
which  Horace  so  frequently  recurs.  The  praise  of  wine  was  a  standing 
theme  of  Greek  and  Roman  lyric  ;  an  invitation  to  dinner  furnished  an 
appropriate  motive  for  introducing  it  again. 

Si  potes  Archiacis  conviva  recumbere  lectis 
nee  modica  cenare  times  olus  omne  patella, 
supremo  te  sole  domi,  Torquate,  manebo. 
Vina  bibes  iterum  Tauro  diffusa  palustris 

i.   Archiacis:  the  implication  is  2.   olus  omne :  i.e., '  nothing  but 

that  this  was  some  modest  kind  the  plainest  food.'  —  patella:  the 

of  couch,  not  quite  fitted  for  use  diminutive  form  is  expressive  of 

at*a  dining  table.     The  Scholiast  the  pretended  humility, 

says   Archias  breves  lectos  fecit,  3.  supremo  sole:    'at   the  end 

which   may  be  a  genuine  tradi-  of   the    day.'     The    more    usual 

tion.  —  conviva :  to  be  taken  with  hour  was   in   the   middle   of  the 

recumbere ;  '  to  recline  as  one  does  afternoon,  but  this  dinner  was  to 

at  the   table.1     Horace  does   not  be  prolonged  into  the  night,  10- 

use  the  ordinary  verb,  accitmbere ;  u. 

but  it   is   possible   that   there  is  4.    iterum  Tauro:    sc.   consule. 

some  special  point  in  recumbere;  Taurus  was  consul  for  the  second 

'if  you  are  able  to  stretch  yourself  time,  with    Augustus,   in    26  B.C. 

out  in  the  usual  way  on  a  short  The  wine  was  of  a  respectable  age, 

couch.'  though  not  at  all  remarkable.  — 

44 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  5.  '2 


10 


inter  Minturnas  Sinuessanumque  Petrinum. 
Si  melius  quid  habes,  arcesse,  vel  imperium  fer. 
lamdudum  splendet  focus  et  tibi  munda  supellex. 
Mitte  levis  spes  et  certamina  divitiarum 
et  Moschi  causam  :  eras  nato  Caesare  festus 
dat  veniam  somnumque  dies ;  impune  licebit 
aestivam  sermone  benigno  tendere  noctem. 
Quo  mihi  fortunam,  si  non  conceditur  uti  ? 


diffusa :  bottled,  i.e.,  poured  from 
the  single  large  jar  in  which  it  had 
fermented  into  the  many  smaller 
amphorae  (hence  dis-fusd)  in 
which  it  was  sealed  up  to  ripen. 

5.  These    places    were    all    in 
the  better  wine-producing  district, 
though  not  in  the  best  part  of  it ; 
the   wine   was   neither   Falernian 
nor  Massic,  but  still  pretty  good, 
as  the  careful  description  shows. 

6.  arcesse:  send  it. — imperium 
fer :    *  or  put  yourself  under   my 
command,'  i.e.,  '  take  what  I  give 
you,1  but  with  a  secondary  refer- 
ence to  the  office  of  magister  bi- 
bendij  which  Horace  pretends  to 
assume  for  himself.  —  The  line  is 
to  be  taken  humorously,  as  a  sort 
of  climax  to  the  description  of  the 
dinner. 

8-9.  mitte:  a  natural  and  per- 
haps also  a  conventional  part  of  an 
invitation  to  a  banquet;  cf.  Carm. 
3,  8,  17,  mitte  ciirilis  super  urbe 
cur  as ;  Carm.  i,  26,  1-6.  —  spes: 
a  very  general  reference  to  all 
kinds  of  ambition.  —  certamina  di- 
vitiarum: a  more  definite  reference 
to  the  struggle  for  wealth  which, 


in  Horace's  judgment,  was  far  too 
common  at  Rome  ;  divitiarum  is 
an  objective  gen. — Moschi  causam : 
a  direct  allusion  to  a  case  which 
was  then  occupying  the  attention 
of  Torquatus.  Moschus  was  a 
rhetorician,  accused  of  poisoning, 
and  defended  by  Torquatus  and 
Asinius  Pollio. 

9.  nato  Caesare :  to  a  reader  of 
Horace's  time  this  bare'  phrase 
would  have  been  perfectly  intelli- 
gible; to  us,  knowing  little  of 
the  circumstances,  it  is  not  clear 
whether  the  reference  is  to  Julius 
Caesar  or  to  Augustus.  But  we 
know  of  no  custom  of  celebrating 
the  birthday  of  Julius  Caesar  so 
long  after  his  death  and,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  birthday  of  Augus- 
tus was  an  occasion  for  festivities 
(Sueton.  Oct.  62).  This  fell  on 
September  23,  and  we  must  there- 
fore take  aestivam  (vs.  n)  in  a 
general  sense.  The  weather  would 
still  be  summer-like  at  that  date.  — 
festus :  there  would  be  no  session 
of  courts  and  no  public  business. 

12.  fortunam :  the  accus.  is  reg- 
ular In  this  exclamation ;  cf.  Sat. 


45 


».  5.  '33 


HORATI 


Parcus  ob  heredis  curam  nimiumque  severus 
adsidet  insane  ;  potare'et  spargere  flores 
incipictm,  patiarque  vel  inconsultus  haberi. 
Quid  non  ebrietas  designat  ?     Operta  recludit, 
spes  iubet  esse  ratas,  ad  proelia  trudit  inertem, 
sollicitis  animis  onus  eximit,  addocet  artes. 
Fecundi  calices  quern  non  fecere  disertum, 
contracta  quern  non  in  paupertate  solutum  ? 
Haec  ego  procurare  et  idoneus  imperor  et  non 
invitus :  ne  turpe  toral,  ne  sordida  mappa 


2,  5,  102;  2,  7,  116;  with  slight 
variations  the  phrase  occurs  half  a 
dozen  times,  followed  by  a  si- 
clause.  It  is  not  necessary  to  sup- 
ply any  definite  verb.  '  What  is 
fortune  for  if  not  for  use  ? '  Cf.  the 
same  thought  more  fully  expressed 
in  Cartn.  2,  3,  9  ff. 

13.  parcus  .  .  .  curam:  'the man 
who  starves  himself  in  order  to 
provide  for  his  heir.'    Cf.  Carm. 
2,  14,  25,  absumet  heres. 

14.  adsidet :  Engl. '  is  next  door 
to.'    Cf.  '  sitteth  in  the  seat  of  the 
scornful.'     Those  who  are  alike 
will  naturally  sit  together.  — flores  : 
a  usual  accompaniment  of  a  feast. 

15.  inconsultus:   Horace's  best 
phrase  for  this  is  duke  est  desipere 
in  loco  {Carm.  4,  12,  28)  ;  here, 
however,  the  word  is  selected  with 
reference  to  his  guest,  who  is  iuris 
consultus    and  would   regard  in- 
consultus as  a  synonym  ofin-sanus 
or  in-sipiens. 

16-18.   ebrietas :  not,  of  course, 
intoxication,  but  the  exhilaration 


produced  by  wine.  The  best  com- 
mentary on  this  passage  is  Carm. 
3,21,  13-20;  designat  (effect,  ac- 
complish) is  the  same  as  tu  lene 
tormenium  (i.e.,  stimulus)  ingenio 
admoves  \  plerumque  duro ;  operta 
recludit  is  a  short  phrase  for  tu 
sapientium  \  curas  et  arcanum 
iocoso  |  consilium  retegis  Lyaeo; 
spes  iubet  esse  ratas  is  equivalent 
to  tu  spem  reducis  mentibus  anxiis, 
and  ad  proelia  trudit  inertem  to 
•virisque  et  addis  cornua  pauperi. 
The  following  phrases,  however, 
have  no  precise  parallel  in  the  Ode. 

19-20.  fecundi:  frequent,  fre- 
quently refilled;  in  effect  the  same 
as  ebrietas. — contracta :  contrasted 
with  solutum  at  the  end  of  the 
verse ;  '  freed  from  the  limitations 
of  poverty.'  • 

21.  haec:  the  details  of  arrange- 
ment and  preparation  which  follow 
in  ne  and  ut  clauses.  —  imperor : 
/  am  bound,  as  host,  '  I  take  it 
upon  myself.' 

22-25.   Cf.  in  general,  Sat.  2,  4, 


EPISTVLAE  I 1,  5,  31 

corruget  nares ;  ne  non  et  cantharus  et  lanx 

ostendat  tibi  te ;  ne  fidos  inter  amicos 
*5      sit  qui  dicta  foras  eliminet;  ut  coeat  par 

iungaturque  pari.     Butram  tibi  Septiciumque 

et  nisi  cena  prior  potiorque  puella  Sabinum 

detinet  adsumam.     Locus  est  et  pluribus  umbris ; 

sed  nimis  arta  premunt  olidae  convivia  caprae. 
30      Tu  quotus  esse  velis  rescribe  et  rebus  omissis 

atria  servantem  postico  falle  clientem. 

81-87,  where  some  emphasis  is  the  chief  guest  might  bring  with 
laid  upon  the  fact  that  these  mat-  him.  Cf.  Sat.  2,  8,  22,  quas  Mae- 
ters  demand  only  attention,  not  cenas  adduxerat  umbras.  —  But 
expense,  and  are  therefore  within  not  so  many  as  to  make  it  neces- 
the  reach  of  persons  of  moderate  sary  to  sit  close  together, 
means,  as  Horace  represents  him-  30-31.  quotus:  i.e., '  name  your 
self  to  be.  —  ostendat :  i-e.,  '  be  number,'  and  I  will  provide  accord- 
brightly  polished.' — eliminet:  ingly. — rescribe:  the  note  was 
'  carry  beyond  the  threshold  of  the  sent  by  a  slave,  who  would  wait 
dining  room.'  for  an  answer.  —  rebus  omissis: 

26-27.   The   three   men    named  'drop  your  business';  a  renewal 

are   all   unknown    to   us.  —  prior:  of  the  exhortation  in  vs.  8.  —  The 

earlier,  one  to  which  he  has  al-  humorous  suggestion  of  vs.  31  is 

ready  been  invited.  also  an  indirect  compliment  to  the 

28-29.  umbris :    persons   whom  busy  lawyer. 


There  is  no  evidence  to  determine  the  date  of  this  Epistle,  and 
Numicius,  whose  name  stands  in  the  first  line,  is  entirely  unknown. 

'  The  steady  composure  of  philosophy  is  the  only  source  of  happiness, 
Numicius.  If  men  can  look  without  superstitious  dread  upon  the  won- 
ders of  the  universe,  they  must  surely  be  able  to  look  without  passion 
upon  the  petty  attractions  of  ambition  and  wealth,  neither  desiring  their 
rewards  nor  fearing  their  loss.  For  they  are  all  a  passing  show,  here 
to-day  and  gone  to-morrow.  But  the  rewards  of  philosophy  are 
permanent. 

'You  think  otherwise  ?  Very  well  ;  follow  your  own  course.  Hurry 
and  labor  to  get  rich  and  then  to  get  richer,  until  you  are  sc»  rich  that 

47 


I,  6,  I]  HORATI 

your  money  is  a  mere  superfluity  to  you  and  a  temptation  to  thieves. 
Or  is  it  office  that  is  to  make  you  happy  ?  Then  crawl  in  the  dirt  to 
get  votes.  Or  are  you  going  to  be  a  lover  of  good  dinners  ?  That  is 
a  simple  ambition,  and  certainly  a  low  one.  Or  is  it  to  be  love  and 
jests  ?  You  know  where  that  ends. 

'  If  this  statement  of  your  views  does  not  suit  you,  make  a  better  one 
or  else  accept  my  ideals.' 

This  Epistle  is  not  a  letter.  In  its  general  form  it  is  not  essentially 
different  from  the  Satires  of  the  First  Book.  The  only  indications  of 
that  personal  tone  which  distinguishes  a  letter  from  a  short  essay  are 
the  purely  formal  address  in  vs.  I,  the  two  closing  lines,  and  the  possi- 
ble allusion  to  the  opinions  of  Numicius  in  vs.  ^ly-virtutem  verba putas. 
These,  however,  are  too  slight  to  produce  the  impression  of  a  letter. 
For  this  reason  it  may  be  surmised  that  this  is  one  of  the  earlier  of  the 
Epistles,  in  which  Horace  is  endeavoring  to  shape  a  new  form  for  his 
social  comments,  different  from  the  Lucilian  form  of  the  First  Book  and 
from  the  dialogue  form  of  the  Second  Book. 

In  the  substance  of  the  Epistle,  however,  in  the  handling  of  the 
familiar  thoughts  about  wealth  and  ambition,  there  is  a  decided  change. 
Horace  here  writes  as  one  to  whom  philosophy  is  a  reality,  an  actual 
and  accepted  guide  in  the  affairs  of  life.  In  this  respect  the  Epistle  is 
quite  unlike  the  earlier  work  and  this  element  brings  it  into  harmony 
with  the  other  writings  in  this  collection. 

Nil  admirari  prope  res  est  una,  Numici, 
solaque,  quae  possit  facere  et  servare  beatum. 
Hunc  solem  et  Stellas  et  decedentia  certis 
tempora  momentis  sunt  qui  formidine  nulla 

i.   nil  admirari:     to  be  undis-  was  the  end  sought   after   in  all 

turbed  in  spirit,  '  to  be  free  from  Greek  systems  of  philosophy.     To 

the  distractions  of  fear  and  desire.'  express     this     he     translates     TO 

No  words  in  Horace  or  perhaps  /Aj;8ev  OavfjuL£uv,  a  phrase  used  by 

in    Latin     literature     have    been  Pythagoras  and  often  repeacetl  in 

more    completely     misunderstood  later  philosophical  writings.     The 

than  these.    Horace  is  not  preach-  same  thought  is  expressed  in  vs. 

ing    indifferentism ;      the    words  14,  below. 

stand  for  that  self-control  and  3-5.  hunc:  as  if  pointing  to  it. 
inward  composure  which,  under  —  tempora :  the  seasons.  —  mo- 
various  names  (drapo^ta,  airdOeta),  mentis :  not  times,  but  changes, 

48 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  6,  14 


imbuti  spectent ;  quid  censes  munera  terrae, 
quid  maris  extremes  Arabas  ditantis  et  Indos, 
ludicra  quid  plausus  et  amici  dona  Quiritis, 
quo  spectanda  modo,  quo  sensu  credis  et  ore  ? 
Qui  timet  his  adversa,  fere  miratur  eodem 
quo  cupiens  pacto ;  pavor  est  utrobique  molestus, 
improvisa  simul  species  exterret  utrumque. 
Gaudeat  an  doleat,  cupiat  metuatne,  quid  ad  rem, 
si  quidquid  vidit  melius  peiusque  sua  spe 
defixis  oculis  animoque  et  corpore  torpet  ? 


alternations  {movi-mentis). —  The 
machinery  of  the  universe  is  looked 
upon  by  the  savage  as  something 
awful,  something  to  be  feared,  but 
some  men  (especially  the  Epi- 
curean philosophers  like  Lucre- 
tius) can  gaze  upon  its  wonders 
without  superstitious  dread.  The 
whole  sentence  is  a  paratactic 
protasis  to  the  thought  of  vss.  5-8  ; 
'  if  men  can  look  upon  the  wonders 
of  nature  without  undue  excite- 
ment, can  we  not  remain  unmoved 
by  trifles  like  wealth  or  office?' 

5-8.  quid  censes :  the  question 
is  put  in  its  most  general  form  and 
then  taken  up  at  the  end  in  the 
more  definite  form  in  vs.  8.  This 
is  a  colloquialism,  like  the  use  of 
quid  ais  ?  to  introduce  a  question. 
Cf.  Cic.  pro  Rose.  17,  49,  'quid 
censes  hunc  ipsum  Sex.  Roscium, 
quo  studio  et  qua  intellegentia  esse 
in  rusticis  rebus?'  and  often. — 
maris :  with  munera ;  the  refer- 
ence is  to  pearls  from  the  eastern 
seas. — ludicra  .  .  .  plausus:  the 

HOR.  EP. — 4  4Q 


absurd  applause ;  plausus  is  appo- 
sitional  gen.  with  hidicra.  [The 
line  is,  however,  by  no  means  clear 
in  sense.] — dona:  i.e.,  offices. — 
ore:  expression;  i.e.,  'with  what 
kind  of  looks.' 

9.  his  .  .  .  adversa :  the  oppo- 
sites  of  wealth  (vs.  6)  and  honors 
(vs.  7). — miratur:  his  fear  of 
poverty  is  in  effect  the  same  kind 
of  emotion  as  love  of  money ; 
either  is  an  unworthy  passion. 

n.  simul:  —  simul ac,  as  often. 
—  species:  i.e.,  the  unexpected 
appearance  of  either  success  or 
defeat. 

12.  quid  ad  rem :  i.e.,  what  dif- 
ference does  it  make  whether  it  is 
pleasure  or  pain?  — The  argument 
of  these  lines  is  enforced  by  being 
repeated  in  different  forms,  mira- 
tur —  pavor  =  torpet ;  improvisa 
species  =  melius  peiusque  sua  spe  \ 
but  the  variation  is  produced  by 
the  use  of  slightly  changed  figures, 
so  that  there  is  no  impression  of 
useless  repetition. 


i,  6,  15] 


HORATI 


15      Insani  nomen  sapiens  ferat,  aequus  iniqui, 
ultra  quam  satis  est  virtutem  si  petat  ipsam. 
I  nunc,  argentum  et  marmor  vetus  aeraque.  et  artes 
suspice,  cum  gemmis  Tyrios  mirare  colores ; 
gaude  quod  spectant  oculi  te  mille  loquentem ; 

20      navus  mane  forum  et  vespertinus  pete  tectum, 
ne  plus'frumenti  dotalibus  emetat  agris 
Mutus  et  —  indignum,  quod  sit  peioribus  ortus, — 
hie  tibi  sit  potius  quam  tu  mirabilis  illi. 
Quicquid  sub  terra  est  in  apricum  proferet  aetas, 


15-16.  This  is  a  summary  of 
the  argument  in  an  extreme,  al- 
most paradoxical,  form  ;  '  even  the 
pursuit  of  the  philosophic  coolness 
may  be  too  ardent.'  —  insani  no- 
men  .  .  .  ferat :  cf.,  with  the  same 
meaning,  adsidet  insa.no,  Epist.  I, 
5,  14.  —  aequus:  this  particular 
virtue  is  selected  for  specification, 
after  the  general  word  sapiens,  be- 
cause this  is  precisely  the  virtue 
which  should  prevent  ultra  quam 
satis  est. 

17-18.  i  nunc:  i.e.,  'in  view  of 
th&e  facts  go  on,  if  you  can,  and 
surrender  yourself  to  the  passion 
for  art  or  honors  or  wealth.1  — 
The  objects  named  in  these  lines 
have  not  been  mentioned  above ; 
they  are  the  signs  of  a  life  of  lux- 
ury and  self-indulgence,  silver 
plate,  statues,  and  other  artistic 
objects.  Cf.  the  reference  in  Sat. 
2,  7,  95  to  excessive  devotion  to 
the  enjoyment  of  art,  which  is 
there  satirized  as  a  form  of 
slavery. 


19.  The  gratified  ambition  of 
the  orator. 

20-23.    The  seeker  after  money. 

—  forum :  as  the  market  place,  the 
Exchange,  not  the  place  of  public 
business.  —  vespertinus  :  only  the 
especially  eager  man  of  business 
would    stay   so   late.  —  frumenti : 
one  form  of  wealth,  as  in  Sat.  I, 
I,   49  ff.  and   often.  —  dotalibus: 
this  is  parenthetic  in  sense,  like 
the  formal  parenthesis  in  the  next 
line ;   '  lest  Mutus  should  have  a 
larger     income     than     you  —  his 
money  came  from  his  wife,  by  the 
way,  and  he  is  a  man  of  very  hum- 
ble origin.1  —  emetat:   reap,  har- 
vest; only  heKe  in  classical  Latin. 

—  Mutus  :  unknown.    He  is  of  the 
same   class  as   the   man   who   is 
attacked  in  Epod.  4. 

24-25.  The  emphasis  is  on  the 
second  part  of  the  sentence,  defo- 
diet  condetque,  and  the  first  part  is 
in  sense  a  clause  of  comparison ; 
'as  time  has  brought  all  this  to 
light,  so  time  will  bury  it  all-'  — 


EPISTVLAE 


i,  6,  3' 


25      defodiet  condetque  nitentia.     Cum  bene  notum 
porticus  Agrippae  et  via  te  conspexerit  Appi, 
ire  tamen  restat  Numa  quo  devenit  et  Ancus. 
Si  latus  aut  renes  morbo  tentantur  acuto, 
quaere  fugam  morbi.     Vis  recte  vivere  :  (quis  non  ?) 

30      si  virtus  hoc  'una  potest  dare,  fortis  omissis 
hoc  age  deliciis.     Virtutem  verba  putas  et 


in  apricum :  i.e.,  into  the  light  of 
day,  into  our  range  of  vision.  This 
particular  expression  for  a  thought 
which  is  more  frequently  expressed 
by  birth  and  death  or  growth  and 
decay  is  chosen  in  order  to  con- 
tinue the  figure  of  seeing,  gazing 
upon,  which  is  prominent  in  the 
earlier  lines  (spectent  5,  spectanda 
8,  species  u,  iridit  13,  oculis  14, 
s^4spice  18). 

25.  bene  notum:  i.e.,  when  you 
win  the  fame  you  are  seeking. 

26.  porticus  Agrippae :    a   new 
portico   opened   in   the    year  25. 
Cf.  also  Epist.  i,  i,  71.  —  via  .  .  . 
Appi :  the  same  form  (for  Appia 
via}  in  Epist.  I,  18,  20.    This  was 
a  favorite   place  for  driving ;    cf. 
Epod.  4,  14,  Appiam  mannis  terit. 

28-68.  '  Since  philosophy  is,  as 
I  have  proved,  the  only  source 
of  happiness,  give  up  all  else  — 
money  making,  ambition,  pleasure 
—  and  seek  this.'  The  thought 
is  clear,  but  its  connection  with  the 
earlier  part  of  the  Epistle  is  some- 
what obscured  by  the  detailed  de- 
scription of  the  three  pursuits 
which  are  to  be  abandoned. 

28.   This  line,  with  quod  instead 


of  si,  is  repeated  from  Sat.  2,  3, 
163;  cf.  Epist.  i,  i,  56.  In  this 
case  there  is  no  point  in  the  repe- 
tition, which  seems  to  be  merely 
an  accidental  reminiscence. 

29.  vis :     a    condition    in    the 
form  of  a  statement,  in  order  to 
avoid    the    awkwardness    of    two 
conditions  with  one  main  clause, 
hoc  age. 

30.  virtus  .  .   .  una:    referring 
back  to  vs.  r.  —  omissis:  this   is 
the    real    verb,    corresponding  to 
quaere  fugam ;    '  if    you   have  a 
disease  of  the  body,  go  to  a  doctor 
and  be  cured ;  if  you  have  a  dis- 
ease of  the  soul  and  wish  to  be 
freed  from  it  (recte  vivere),  then 
give  up  the  follies  that  have  caused 
it  and  —  if  my  argument  has  con- 
vinced you  that  philosophy  is  the 
only  cure —  go  to  philosophy.1 

31.  The   opposite    of    vs.    30; 
'but  if  you  think  that  philosophy 
is   nonsense,   then   go   your  own 
way.'     The  rest  of  the  Epistle  is 
an   amplification  of  this  thought, 
expressed   in  words  which  reveal 
the  unsoundness  of  the    hope  of 
finding   happiness   in   such   ways 
and  therefore,  by  indirection,  re- 


I.  6,  32] 


HORATI 


lucum  ligna  :  cave  ne  portus  occupet  alter, 

ne  Cibyratica,  ne  Bithyna  negotia  perdas ; 

mille  talenta  rotundentur,  totidem  altera,  porro  et 

35      tertia  succedant,  et  quae  pars  quadret  acervum. 
Scilicet  uxorem  cum  dote  fidemque  et  amicos 
et  genus  et  formam  regina  pecunia  donat, 
ac  bene  nummatum  decorat  Suadela  Venusque. 
Mancipiis  locuples  eget  aeris  Cappadocum  rex: 

40     ne  fueris  hie  tu.     Chlamydes  Lucullus,  ut  aiunt, 
si  posset  centum  scaenae  praebere  rogatus, 
'  Qui  possum  tot  ? '  ait,  '  Tamen  et  quaeram  et  quot 
habebo 


mind  the  reader  of  the  doctrine  of 
vs.  i  and  vs.  30. 

32.  lucum  ligna:  i.e.,  to  think 
that  philosophy  is  mere  words  is 
as  foolish  as  to  think  that  a  sacred 
grove  is  nothing  but  so  much  fire- 
wood. —  portus  occupet :  not  as  in 
Carm.  i,  14,  2,  where  the  port  is 
a  harbor  of  refuge  from  storm  ;  the 
portus  is  here  the  harbor  where 
the  cargo  is  to  be  sold  and  the 
jirst  comer  will  get  the  best  prices. 

33-  Cibyratica:  business  with 
Cibyra,  a  city  in  Asia  Minor.  — 
negotia:  ventures  was  the  word 
used  in  the  China  trade. 

35.  quadret :     '  make    the    pile 
four-square,1    add    still    a    fourth 
thousand  talents. 

36.  scilicet :  of  course,  you  know, 
often  as  here  with  irony.  —  fidem : 
credit,  in  the  business  sense. 

37.  regina :  another  ironical  sug- 
gestion of  the  absurdity  of  this 
ideal. 


38.  Suadela:    goddess  of  per- 
suasive   eloquence.  —  The   terms 
used   here  are   in  part   the  same 
used  in  stating  the  Stoic  Paradox 
that  the  sapiens  possesses  every- 
thing; cf.  Sat.  i,  3,  123  ff. 

39.  mancipiis :  with  locuples.  — 
aeris :     after    eget.  —  Cappadocia 
furnished  many  slaves  to  Roman 
masters,  but  the  kingdom  was  hard 
pressed   for  cash  (aeris).     Of  the 
previous  king  Cicero  says, '  nullum 
aerarium,   nullum    vectigal    habet 
.  .  .  nihil  illo  regno  spoliatius,  nihil 
rege  egentius,'  ad  Att.  6,  i,  3. 

40.  ne  fueris:    i.e.  'do   not   be 
content  unless  you  have  wealth  of 
every  kind,'  of  course  ironically. 
—  The  following  story  of  Lucullus 
is    repeated     also     by     Plutarch, 
Lucull.   39,  with    a  reference  to 
Horace's  comment  in  vs.  45. 

41.  scaenae:    the    cloaks   were 
needed  to  dress  a   large   chorus, 
who  were  to  appear  in  rich  dress. 


EPISTVLAE 


[1.  6,  53 


mittam.'     Post  paullo  scribit  sibi  milia  quinque 
esse  domi  chlamydum  ;  partem  vel  tolleret  omnes. 

45      Exilis  domus  est,  ubi  non  et  multa  supersunt 
et  dominum  fallunt  et  prosunt  furibus.     Ergo 
si  res  sola  potest  facere  et  servare  beatum, 
hoc  primus  repetas  opus,  hoc  postremus  omittas. 
Si  fortunatum  species  et  gratia  praestat, 

50      mercemur  servum  qui  dictet  nomina,  laevum 
qui  fodicet  latus  et  cogat  trans  pondera  dextram 
porrigere.     '  Hie  multum  in  Fabia  valet,  ille  Velina ; 
cui  libet  hie  fasces  dabit,  eripietque  curule 


43.  milia  quinque:      Plutarch, 
with  the  sobriety  of  a  biographer, 
puts  the  number  at  two  hundred. 

44.  tolleret :  the  subject  is  the 
praetor  who  was  giving  the  games ; 
in  the  note  it  would  be  tolle. 

45-46.  The  application  of  the 
story.  '  Don't  be  like  the  king  of 
Cappadocia,  but  be  really  rich, 
like  Lucullus,  who  had  more  things 
than  he  could  possibly  use  —  mere 
plunder  for  thieves.' 

47.  A  reminder  of  vss.  1-2  and 
therefore  of  the  ironical  meaning 
of  all  this  exhortation. 

48.  This  also  repeats  vs.  20,  in  a 
slightly  different  form,  and  the  rep- 
etition has  the  effect  of  saying, '  we 
are  back  where  we  were  before.1 

49-55-  '  If  office  holding  is  your 
ideal,  then  use  the  unpleasant 
methods  of  the  politician.1 

49.  species :  the  state  and  splen- 
dor of  high  office.  —  gratia :    the 
personal  influence  that  wins  votes. 

50.  servum:     the    nomenclator, 


whose  business  it  was  to  know  the 
names  of  citizens  and  remind  his 
master,  so  that  the  master  might 
greet  them  as  if  he  remembered 
them. 

51.  fodicet:  a  colloquial  word, 
nudge.  —  The  rest   of    the  verse 
contains     an    allusion     to    some 
action   of  a    candidate    soliciting 
votes,  some  act  which  would  not 
be  agreeable   to  a  self-respecting 
man,  but  which  his  desire  to  pro- 
pitiate   a  voter  compels    him   to 
perform.      But    there    are    many 
details  of  Roman  life  about  which 
we  know  so  little  that  an  allusion 
to  them  must  remain  unintelligible. 
It   is  not  worth   while   to   repeat 
here  the  attempts  that  have  been 
made  by  scholars  to  explain  trans 
pondera]  the  data  are  not  suffi- 
cient to  make  the  allusion  clear. 

52.  Fabia,  Velina :      sc.     tribu. 
These    are    voting   districts,   fre- 
quently mentioned. 

53-55-  curule  .    .  .   ebur:    the 


53 


I.  6»  54j 


HORATI 


cui     volet     importunus     ebur.'        'Prater,'     'pater' 
adde; 

55     ut  cuique  est  aetas,  ita  quemque  facetus  adopta, 
Si,  bene  qui  cenat,  bene  vivit,  lucet ;  eamus 
quo  ducet  gula  :  piscemur,  venemur,  ut  olim 
Gargilius,  qui  mane  plagas,  venabula,  servos, 
differtum  transire  forum  populumque  iubebat, 

60      unus  ut  e  multis  populo  spectante  referret 

emptum  mulus  aprum  ;  crudi  tumidique  lavemur, 
quid  deceat,  quid  non,  obliti,  Caerite  cera 


ivory  chair  of  the  curule  magistrate. 
—  importunus :  '  when  he  is  in  a 
bad  temper.'  It  is  an  added 
humiliation  that  the  candidate 
must  keep  surly  voters  in  good 
humor.  —  pater:  Horace  repre- 
sents himself  as  addressing  Tre- 
batius  as  pater  optime,  Sat.  2,  I, 
12. — facetus:  not  jokingly  but 
with  ready  speech,  suiting  the  ad- 
dress to  the  age  of  the  voter. 

56-64.  '  If  the  pleasures  of  the 
table  seem  to  you  the  highest 
good,  then  follow  where  appetite 
leads.'  The  new  thought  is  in- 
troduced abruptly,  as  in  vs.  49. 

56.  lucet :    '  it's  morning  '   and 
the  time  to  provide  food  for  the 
day's  feasting. 

57.  piscemur,  venemur :  not  lit- 
erally, but  in  the  market ;  '  let  us 
look  for  fish  and  game  as  earnestly 
as  Gargilius  did.' 

58-60.  The  comparison  is  car- 
ried out  into  ludicrous  details 
which  have  nothing  to  do  with 
the  argument.  Cf.  the  allusion  to 


Ruso,  Sat.  i,  3,  86  ff.  —  differtum 
.  .  .  populumque :  for  differtum 
populo.  The  repetition  in  the 
next  line  is  intentional. — ut: 
grammatically  a  clause  of  purpose, 
but  in  content  an  expression  of 
the  very  small  results  of  so  much 
preparation.  —  emptum :  this  joke 
is  still  in  circulation. 

61.  crudi:  so  in  Sat.   I,  5,  49, 
of  one  who  began  to  take  exercise 
too  soon  after  a  meal.     The  three 
words  go  together ;  '  let  us  go  at 
once  from  a  gluttonous  meal  to  a 
hot  bath,  from  one  indulgence  to 
another.'     The  verb  lavemur  re- 
sumes the  construction  of piscemur, 
•venemur,  vs.    57,   after  the   long 
comparison,  ut  .  .  .  aprum. 

62.  Caerite  cera :  the  wax -cov- 
ered tablets   on    which   were    the 
lists  of  citizens  who  had  not  the 
right    of    suffrage.      These    were 
called     tabulae      Caeritum,     and 
Caerite  cera  digni  therefore  means 
'  unworthy  of  the  rights  of  Roman 
citizens.1 


54 


EPISTVLAE  [i,  6,  68 

digni,  remigium  vitiosum  Ithacensis  Vlixi, 
cui  potior  patria  fuit  interdicta  voluptas. 
65      Si,  Mimnermus  uti  censet,  sine  amore  iocisque 
nil  est  iucundum,  vivas  in  amore  iocisque. 
Vive,  vale :  si  quid  novisti  rectius  istis, 
candidus  imperti ;  si  non,  his  utere  mecum. 

63.   remigium :     collective,     for  Mimnermus :    a   writer   of    erotic 

remiges,  the    crew.      The   words  elegy,  a  contemporary  of  Solon, 

contain,    of  course,   a   condensed  67-68.   vive,  vale:  so  Sat.  2,5, 

comparison.  no. — istis:  'than  these  ideas  of 

65-66.    A   fourth  object  in  life,  yours,'  with  the  proper  force  of  the 

which,  however,    is    regarded    as  second    person.      Cf.    the   words 

scarcely    distinct    from    the    one  which  introduce  these  ideals  of  life, 

which   has  just  preceded   and  is  virtittem  verba pittas. — his:  'my 

therefore   barely  mentioned.     Cf.  views,'  as  set  forth  in  the  first  part, 

Sat.  2,  3,  where  the  main  heads  of  1-27. 

the  sermon  are  given  in  vss.  78-79  The  abruptness  of  the  close  is 

and  amorousness  is   treated  as  a  characteristic  of  Horace,  e.g.,  S&t. 

subdivision  of  luxuria,  247-280. —  i.  i;  1,2;  1,3. 


In  spite  of  the  personal  allusions  in  the  early  part  of  this  Epistle,  it 
is  impossible  to  determine  with  certainty  the  year  in  which  it  was 
written.  Nor  is  it  clear  where  Horace  was  when  he  wrote  ;  he  was  in 
the  country,  and  it  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  there  is  no  refer- 
ence to  his  Sabine  farm  that  he  was  at  some  other  place  in  the  moun- 
tains. Maecenas  was  in  Rome. 

'  I  have  changed  my  mind,  my  dear  Maecenas,  and  am  not  coming  to 
Rome  now  nor  even  soon.  I  shall  go  down  to  the  coast  for  the  winter 
and  shall  not  see  you,  my  dear  friend,  until  spring  comes.  My  debt  to 
you  is  great,  but  I  count  with  confidence  upon  your  consideration  for 
me  ;  I  am  not  as  young  as  I  was  once.  Perhaps  my  refusal  to  return 
seems  to  you  ungrateful  ;  you  are  reminded,  perhaps,  of  the  fable  of  the 
fox  in  the  corn  bin.  I  admit  the  justice  of  the  application  and  stand 
ready  to  submit.  I  can  return  your  gifts  without  any  change  in  the 
esteem  I  have  long  felt  for  you.  Telemachus,  you  remember,  returned 
the  gift  of  Menelaus,  saying  that  he  could  not  use  horses  and  a  chariot 

55 


i,  7,  I]  HORATI 

on  his  little  island.  So  it  is  with  me  ;  Rome  is  too  big  for  me,  and  1 
am  too  small  for  Rome.  Let  me  tell  you  a  story.  Philippus,  the 
lawyer,  once  made  acquaintance  with  a  small  tradesman  and,  partly  for 
his  own  amusement,  induced  him  to  give  up  his  life  in  Rome  and  turn 
farmer.  The  natural  result  followed  ;  the  amateur  farmer  came  to 
utter  grief.  As  he  looked  at  the  ruins,  he  saw  his  mistake,  galloped 
back  to  Philippus  and  begged  to  be  allowed  to  return  the  gift.  The 
moral  is  that  every  man  must  go  his  own  way.' 

This  Epistle  was  written  late  in  August  or  early  in  September. 
Horace  had  left  Rome  in  midsummer,  promising  to  return  after  a  short 
stay  in  the  mountains.  He  had,  however,  stayed  for  a  month,  and 
Maecenas,  detained  in  Rome,  had  written  him,  asking  him  to  come 
back  and  reminding  him  of  his  promise  and  probably  of  his  obligation 
to  his  benefactor.  To  that  letter  Horace  replies  in  this  Epistle.  The 
personal  tone  is  strong  in  vss.  1-13,  24-28,  34-39,  but  the  greater  part 
of  the  Epistle  consists  of  the  four  stories  which  are  -woven  into  it,  the 
story  of  the  Calabrian,  vss.  14-19,  of  the  fox,  29-33,  of  Telemachus, 
40-43,  and  the  long  story  of  Philippus,  46-95.  The  effect  of  the  intro- 
duction of  this  large  amount  of  impersonal  material  is  to  make  the 
Epistle  read  like  a  Satire.  And  a  comparison  with  Sat.  i,  6  and 
Sat.  2,  6  will  show  that  Horace  has  here,  in  treating  a  serious  subject, 
returned  in  part  to  his  earlier  form.  The  fusion,  however,  of  the  two 
elements  is  carried  out  with  great  skill,  and  this  Epistle  is  justly  re- 
garded as  one  of  the  poet's  most  finished  productions. 

But  the  personal  aspect  of  it  is  even  more  interesting  than  the  artistic 
form.  The  position  was  one  of  real  difficulty.  It  is  handled  with 
admirable  independence  and  candor  and  with  most  friendly  considera- 
tion for  the  feelings  of  Maecenas.  Undoubtedly,  as  the  fact  of  publica- 
tion shows,  it  was  received  by  him  with  appreciation  and  with  generous 
cordiality. 

Quinque  dies  tibi  pollicitus  me  rure  futurum 
Sextilem  totum  mendax  desideror.     Atqui 
si  me  vivere  vis  sanum  recteque  valentem, 

1.  quinque    dies:     a    'round'  the  blunt  confession  is  meant  to 
number,  as  in  Sat.  i,  3,  16;  2,  3,  take   off  the   edge   of   Maecenas1 
289,  and  often  ;  'a  week.1  annoyance. 

2.  Sextilem :   not  at  this    time  3.    sanum  .  .   .  valentem :    such 
named  after  Augustus.  —  mendax :  expressions  are  frequently  doubled, 

56 


EPISTVLAE 


7.  I2 


quam  mihi  das  aegro,  dabis  aegrotare  timenti, 
Maecenas,  veniam,  dum  ficus  prima  calorque 
dissignatorem  decorat  lictoribus  atris  ; 
dum  pueris  omnis  pater  et  matercula  pallet, 
officiosaque  sedulitas  et  opella  forensis 
adducit  febris  et  testamenta  resignat. 
Quodsi  bruma  nives  Albanis  illinet  agris, 
ad  mare  descendet  vates  tuus  et  sibi  parcet 
contractusque  leget ;  te,  dulcis  amice,  reviset 


without  any  real  difference  in  the 
meaning  of  the  two  words ;  so 
•valere  et  vivere,  i>ive  vale. 

4.  aegrotare  timenti :    the  next 
lines  amplify  this  thought.  —  Verbs 
of  fearing  are  occasionally  followed 
by  an  infin. ;  Lane,  1959. 

5.  ficus  prima :  i.e.,  late  August, 
the  time  when  the  first  figs  ripen, 
but  with  reference  also  to  the  be- 
lief that  early-ripening   figs   were 
injurious  to  the  health. 

6.  dissignatorem-.      the    under- 
taker ;    he    directed    the    funeral 
procession,    with   attendants  (lie- 
tores)  dressed  in  black  to  clear  the 
way. 

7.  dum:  the   thought  is  better 
expressed  in  Engl .  by  an  indepen- 
dent sentence  ;    '  and  meanwhile,' 
•and   all   the   time.' — matercula: 
cf.  mttricula,  Epist.  i,  4,  8. 

8.  officiosa :  not  with  reference 
to  public  duties,  but  to  those  so- 
cial    obligations     which     Horace 
himself  found  so  oppressive  when 
lie   was  in   the   city ;    cf.  Sat.  2, 
6,  230°. — opslla  :   the  diminutive 


form  expresses  the  writer's  feel- 
ing of  the  pettiness  of  all  such 
things. 

9.  resignat :    i.e.,    brings   fatal 
disease  and   therefore  causes  the 
opening  of  wills. 

10.  quodsi :  temporal,  not  con- 
ditional; but  when.     This  is  reg- 
ularly the  meaning  of  si  when  the 
fact    stated    m    the    ^/-clause    is 
certain  to  occur. 

n.  ad  mare :  to  some  place  on 
the  southern  seacoast,  perhaps 
not  yet  definitely  selected,  or  per- 
haps Tarentum  ;  cf.vs.  45. — vates  : 
this  old  word  had  fallen  into  disuse, 
but  was  restored  to  good  usage  by 
the  Augustan  writers  as  a  substi- 
tute for  the  Greek  poeta.  Here  it 
is  probably  a  quotation  from  the 
letter  of  Maecenas,  to  which  this 
is  a  reply. 

12.  contractus:  'huddled  to- 
gether,' as  if  drawn  up  by  the  chill 
of  cold.  — leget:  read.  The  ex- 
pression here  is  rather  brief,  but 
is  made  easier  by  the  plainer  phrase 
sibi  parcet. 


57 


I.  7.  '3] 


HORATI 


20 


cum  zephyris,  si  concedes,  et  hirundine  prima. 

Non  quo  more  piris  vesci  Calaber  iubet  hospes, 

tu  me  fecisti  locupletem.     '  Vescere  sodes  ! ' 

'  lam  satis  est.'    'At  tu  quantum  vis  tolle.'    'Benigne.' 

4  Non  invisa  feres  pueris  munuscula  parvis.' 

'  Tarn  teneor  dono  quam  si  dimittar  onustus.' 

'  Vt  libet ;  haec  porcis  hodie  comedenda  relinques.' 

Prodigus  et  stultus  donat  quae  spernit  et  odit ; 

haec  seges  ingratos  tulit  et  feret  omnibus  annis. 

Vir  bonus  et  sapiens  dignis  ait  esse  paratus  ; 

nee  tamen  ignorat,  quid  distent  aera  lupinis. 


13.  si  concedes :  if  you  will  per- 
mit.    This   friendly   formula,  like 
the  address  dulcis  amice,  is  inserted 
with  real  delicacy  of  feeling  into 
the   sentence   which    conveys    to 
Maecenas  the  full  extent  of  Hor- 
ace's purpose,  to  remain  away  from 
Rome  not  only  through  August  and 
September,  but  all  winter,  until  the 
signs  of  spring  come.  —  hirundine : 
the  poetic  herald  of  spring. 

14.  There  is  both  firmness  and 
delicacy  in  the  immediate  turning 
to   the    story,    without   argument 
or  excuse.  —  Calaber :    merely  to 
make  the  story  seem  real,  as  names 
are  often  used  in  the  Satires,  e.g., 
I,  I,  6;  20,  58. 

15.  locupletem:    it  is    only  in 
this  connection,  where  it  empha- 
sizes  his  gratitude,  that   Horace 
speaks  of  himself  as  rich. 

1 6.  benigne :    a   courteous  for- 
mula  of  refusal ;  so  tarn  gratia. 
Used  again  in  vs.  62. 

»o.  quae  spernit :  i.e.,  things  that 


are  of  no  value  to  him, porcis  come- 
denda.  The  thought  is  expressed 
with  a  slight  difference  by  Seneca, 
Epist.  1 20,  8,  multi  sunt,  qui  nan 
donant,  sed  proiciunt ;  cf.  the 
whole  section. 

21.  seges :  the  use  of  this  figure 
is  suggested  by  a  proverb  like  that 
quoted  by  Cicero,  de  Or.  64,  261, 
ut  sementem  feceris,  it  a  metes. 

22.  vir  bonus:   the  adversative 
connection  is  merely  suggested,  as 
often  in  Horace,  by  the  contrast 
between  these  words  and  prodigus 
et  stultus.  —  dignis  .  .  .  faratus: 
'  is  ready  to  give  to  men  of  \\  orthy 
character.'   Cf.  the  similar  thought 
in  Sat.  I,  6,  51,  praesertim  cautus 
dignos  adsumere,  used  also  of  Mae- 
cenas, as  if  that  was  a  principle 
definitely  laid  down  by  him  in  be- 
stowing his  friendship.     Cf.  also 
Sat.  I,  6,  7  f. 

23.  lupinis:  lupines,  a  kind  of 
bean  used  as  stage  money ;   Plaut. 
Poen.  597.  —  This  line  amplifies 


EPISTVLAE 


7.  34 


Dignum  praestabo  me  etiam  pro  laude  merentis. 

25      Quodsi  me  noles  usquam  discedere,  reddes 
forte  latus,  nigros  angusta  fronte  capillos  ; 
reddes  dulce  loqui,  reddes  ridere  decorum  et 
inter  vina  fugam  Cinarae  maerere  protervae. 
Forte  per  angustam  tenuis  vulpecula  rimam 

30      repserat  in  cumeram  frumenti,  pastaque  rursus) 

ire  fofas  pleno  tendebat  corpore  frustra. 

Cui  mustela  procul :  '  Si  vis/  ait,  '  effugere  istinc, 
macra  cavum  repetes  artum,  quem  macra  subisti.' 
Hac  ego  si  compellor  imagine,  cuncta  resigno  ; 


sapiens]  he  knows  the  value  of  his 
gifts. 

24.  dignum:  as  you,  bonus  et 
sapiens,  are  ready  for  the  worthy, 
so  I  am  ready  to  show  myself  dig- 
num by  my  gratitude,  pro  laude 
merentis. 

25~36-  '  I  am  indeed  grateful,  but 
I  must  have  my  freedom  too ;  I  am 
no  longer  young,  and  you  must  not 
expect  from  me  a  constant  attend- 
ance. If  you  expected  that,  I  should 
have  to  remind  you  of  the  story  of 
the  fox  in  the  corn  bin  and  act 
according  to  the  moral  of  the  tale.' 

26.  latus :  lungs,  chest ;  but  we  « 
do  not  know  that  Horace  suffered 
from  any  disease  of  the  kind  this 
would  suggest.  —  nigros:  he  says 
that  he  was  praecanus,  i  gray  be- 
fore his  time  ' ;  Epist.  i,  20,  24. 
—  angusta  fronte :  i.e.,  not  yet  be- 
ginning to  get  bald. 

27-28.  '  Give  me  again  the  pow- 
er to  enjoy  the  pleasures  of  youth.1 
The  details  are  not  meant  to  be 


personal,  but  general ;  '  the  pleas- 
ant voice  and  laughter  of  youth.' 
—  Cinarae:  cf.  Carm.  4,  i,  3-4, 
non  sum  qualis  eram  bonae  \  sub 
regno  Cinarae.  She  is  the  only 
one  of  the  girls  mentioned  by  Hor- 
ace who  seems  to  have  had  a  real 
existence. 

29.  vulpecula:     the  fox  is  the 
hero  of  many  of  the  Fables,  as  of 
many  of  the  tales  of  Uncle  Remus. 
In  such  stories  almost  no  attention 
is  paid  to  the  real  habits  of  the  ani- 
mals ;  indeed,  it  is  common  to  find 
that  in  different  versions  the  ani- 
mals are  changed  about  freely,  as, 
for  example,  this  fable  is  also  told 
with  a  mouse  for  the  chief  actor. 

30.  cumeram:    bin   or  jar  for 
storing  grain  ;  cf.  Sat.  i,  I,  53. 

32.  procul :  at  a  little  distance ; 
this  is  a  common  meaning ;  cf.  Sat. 
2,  6,  105. 

34.  ego :  emphatic.  —  compel- 
lor :  not  as  in  Sat.  2,  3,  297,  but 
in  the  legal  sense ;  <  I  too,  if  I 


59 


»•  7.  35] 


IIOKATI 


35      nec  somnum  plebis  laudo  satur  altilium,  nee 
otia  divitiis  Arabum  liberrima  muto. 
Saepe  verecundum  laudasti,  rexque  paterque 
audisti  coram,  nec  verbo  parcius  absens ; 
inspice  si  possum  donata  reponere  laetus. 

40      Haud  male  Telemachus,  proles  patientis  Vlixi : 
'  Non  est  aptus  equis  Ithace  locus,  ut  neque  planis 
porrectus  spatiis  nec  multae  prodigus  herbae ; 
Atride,  magis  apta  tibi  tua  dona  relinquam.' 
Parvum  parva  decent :  mihi  iam  non  regia  Roma, 

45      sed  vacuum  Tibur  placet  aut  imbelle  Tarentum. 

am  summoned  on  the  analogy  of     called;  so  Sat.  2,  6,  20  and  often. 


this  fable,  .  .  .'  —  resigno  :  also 
formal ;  restore,  '  transfer  back  to 
you  under  my  hand  and  seal.1  The 
word  is  used  in  a  similar  context 
in  Carm.  3,  29,  54,  resigno  quae 
\_For tuna~\  dedit. 

35-36.  altilium  :  with  satur ;  it 
means,  properly,  fowls  fattened  for 
eating,  then  any  specially  fine  food. 
The  meaning  is,  'I  am  in  earnest 
in  saying  cuncta  resigno ;  I  am  not 
so  inconsistent  as  to  be  praising  a 
simple  life  while  I  live  in  luxury ; 
I  do  not  wish  to  give  up  my  free- 
dom for  all  the  wealth  of  Arabia.' 

37.  verecundum:  for  my  mod- 
esty;   cf.  Carm.  2,  18,  12,  nec  po- 
tentem    amicum    largiora  flagito, 
satis  beatus  unicis  Sabinis.  —  rex : 
=  patronus.  —  pater:     Maecenas 
was  only  a  few  years  older  than 
Horace,    but    the   difference   was 
enough  to  justify  the  use  of  this 
term  of  respect. 

38.  audisti :    you    have    been 


—  absens :  with  no  reference  to  his 
separation  at  this  time,  but  in  con- 
trast to  coram. 

39.  '  Try  me  and  see  whether  I 
cannot  do  as  I  say,  and  without 
repining,  too.'  laetus  at  the  end 
of  the  line  is  emphatic. 

40-43.  Menelaus  presented 
horses  and  a  chariot  to  Telema- 
chus as  an  expression  of  friendship 
for  him  and  his  father.  The  reply 
of  Telemachus,  of  \vhich  vss.  41- 
43  are  a  paraphrase,  is  in  Odys.  4, 
60 1  ff.  —  patientis:  an  ornamental 
epithet,  translating  the  Homeric 
iroXi/rXai. 

44-45.  parvum  parva  :  i.e.,  '  so 
it  is  with  me ;  I  can  accept  only 
gifts  that  are  suitable  to  my  tastes, 
not  gifts  that  require  a  change  of 
life.' — regia,  vacuum,  imbelle: 
royal,  quiet,  peaceful;  the  adjec- 
tives are  carefully  chosen  to  carry 
on  the  modesty  of  parvum. — 
There  is  a  change  of  emphasis 


60 


EP1STVLAE 


7.  S3 


5° 


Strenuus  et  fortis  causisquc  Philippus  agendis 
clarus,  ab  officiis  octavam  circiter  horam 
dum  redit  atque  foro  nimium  distare  Carinas 
iam  grandis  natu  queritur,  conspexit,  ut  aiunt, 
adrasum  quendam  vacua  tonsoris  in  umbra 
cultello  proprios  purgantem  leniter  ungues. 
'  Demetri,'  (puer  hie  non  laeve  iussa  Philippi 
accipiebat,)  '  abi ;  quaere  et  refer,  unde  domo,  quis, 


at  this  point.  Hitherto  the  stress 
has  been  upon  Horace's  inability 
to  stay  in  Rome,  upon  the  sincerity 
of  his  gratitude  to  Maecenas,  and 
upon  his  unwillingness  to  be  bound 
by  the  gifts  he  had  received.  From 
vs.  44  the  emphasis  is  rather  upon 
his  unfitness  for  such  a  life  as  he 
must  lead  if  he  were  to  be  con- 
stantly in  attendance  upon  his 
patron. 

46-95.  The  story  of  Philippus 
and  Volteius  Mena  is  a  companion 
piece  to  the  story  of  the  Town 
Mouse  and  the  Country  Mouse, 
which  enforces  the  moral  of  Sat. 
2,6. 

46.  Philippus :  one  of  the  famous 
Roman  orators,  consul  in  the  year 
91.     The   description   of  him   in 
Cic.  de  Or  at.  3,  1,4,  et  vehementi 
et  diserto  et  imprimis  forti  ad  rests- 
tendum,  agrees  with  the  description 
given  here. 

47.  octavam:  the  courts  opened 
early,  by  nine  o'clock  (Sat.  i,  9, 
35  f.),  and  all  public  business  was 
over  early  in  the  afternoon.     This 
bit  of  detail,  with   others   below 
(vss.  50  f.,  71.  76,  80,  90),  is  in- 


tended to  give  vividness  to  this 
traditional  (lit  aiunt,  vs.  49)  tale. 
48.  Carinas:  a  part  of  the  city 
in  which  it  is  known  that  various 
persons  of  importance  (Pompey, 
Q.  Cicero)  resided.  It  was  not,  in 
fact,  far  from  the  Forum,  but  it 
seemed  so  to  an  old  man,  tired 
with  his  day's  work. 

50.  adrasum:    i.e.,  he  was  al- 
ready   shaved    and    therefore    at 
leisure.  —  vacua  ...  in  umbra :  the 
barber's  shop  was  a  booth,  open 
toward  the  street,  at  this  time  empty 
and,  in  contrast  with  the  hot  street, 
cool  and  shaded. 

51.  proprios:  this  was  sometimes 
done  by  the  barber ;  the  only  rea- 
son for  representing  the  man  as 
doing   it  for  himself  is  that  the 
leisurely  (leniter}  occupation  adds 
to  the  picture  of  ease  and  inde- 
pendence, which*  attracted  the  at- 
tention of  the  tired  old  lawyer  as 
he  passed. 

52.  puer  hie :    the   pedisequus 
who  accompanied  any  respectable 
man   in  the  streets,  e.g.,  Horace 
himself  (Sat.  I,  9,  10). 

53.  unde  domo:  this  colloquial 


fit 


»»  7.  54] 


HORATl 


cuius  fortunae,  quo  sit  patre  quove  patrono.' 
55      It,  redit  et  narrat  Volteium  nomine  Menam, 
praeconem,  tenui  censu,  sine  crimine,  notum 
et  properare  loco  et  cessare,  et  quaerere  et  uti, 
gaudentem  parvisque  sodalibus  et  lare  certo 
et  ludis  et  post  decisa  negotia  campo. 
60      '  Scitari  libet  ex  ipso  quodcumque  refers ;  die 
ad  cenam  veniat.'     Non  sane  credere  Mena; 
mirari  secum  tacitus.     Quid  multa  ?     '  Benigne,' 
respondet     '  Negat   ille   mihi  ? '      '  Negat    improbus, 
et  te 


doubling  of  expression  is  frequent 
in  Plaut.  and  Ter.,  and  unde  is 
often  used  for  a  quo  (Sat.  I,  6, 12) 
or  a  qua. 

54.  patrono :  i.e.,  if,  in  answer 
to  the  question  cuius  fortunae,  he 
should  say  that  he  was  a  freed- 
man. 

55.  Volteium  .  .  .  Menam:  the 
names  show  that  he  was  a  Greek, 
freedman  of  some  patron  named 
Volteius. 

56-59.  These  details  answer  the 
question  cuius  fortunae.  —  praco- 
nem  :  an  auctioneer,  but  in  a  small 
way,  cf.  vs.  65.  This  was  one  of 
the  occupations  which  Horace 
mentions  {Sat.  i,  6,  86)  as  a  pos- 
sible one  for  himself,  had  matters 
not  turned  out  otherwise.  —  loco  : 
'in  the  proper  place,'  as  occasion 
might  demand  ;  cf.  the  well-known 
duke  est  desipere  in  loco  (Carm.  4, 
12,  28).  The  two  verbs  are  fur- 
ther defined  by  et  quaerere  et  uti 
and  form  a  combination  of  quali- 


ties which  Horace  often  recom- 
mends to  the  man  of  business. 
—  lare  certo :  i.e.,  a  respectable 
householder.  —  post  .  .  .  negotia : 
further  evidence  of  good  character ; 
he  did  not  neglect  his  business  for 
amusements.  —  The  description 
gives  an  interesting  picture  of  a 
kind  of  person  who  does  not 
often  find  a  place  in  Latin  liter- 
ature. 

61-62.  The  historical  infinitives, 
the  short  sentences,  and  the  phrase 
quid  multa?  are  characteristic  of 
the  story  teller,  hurrying  over  un- 
important details.  —  benigne :  cf. 
vs.  16. 

63.  negat  ille:  'does  he  refuse 
me  ? '  A  repudiating  exclamation. 
[There  are  many  instances  of  this 
kind  of  exclamation  in  Plaut.  with 
the  indie.,  but  none  parallel  to  this 
with  the  subjv.  neget  and  answered 
by  an  indie,  negat.']  —  improbus  : 
the  slave  shares  his  master's  in- 
dignation. 


62 


EPISTVLAE 


7»  75 


neglegit  aut  horret.'     Volteium  mane  Philippus 
65      vilia  vendentem  tunicato  scruta  popello 

occupat  et  salvere  iubet  prior.     Ille  Philippe 
excusare  laborem  et  mercennaria  vincla, 
quod  non  mane  domum  venisset,  denique  quod  non 
providisset  eum.     '  Sic  ignovisse  putato 
70      me  tibi,  si  cenas  hodie  mecum.'     '  Vt  libet.'     '  Ergo 
post  nonam  venies  :  mine  i,  rem  strenuus  auge.' 
Vt  ventum  ad  cenam  est,  dicenda  tacenda  locutus 
tandem  dormitum  dimittitur.     Hie  ubi  saepe 
occultum  visus  decurrere  piscis  ad  hamum, 
75      mane  cliens  et  iam  certus  con  viva,  iubetur 


64.  mane  :   i.e.,  the  next  morn- 
ing.   The  story  again  hurries  over 
details. 

65.  tunicato :   the  toga  was  an 
inconvenient  dress  for  persons  en- 
gaged  in  active   work,  and  was, 
therefore,  worn   by   the   common 
people  only  on  formal  occasions. 
—  popello:  the  diminutive  carries 
on   the   suggestion   of  disparage- 
ment in  tunicato.  —  scruta  :  trash, 
second-hand   stuff;    a  rather  rare 
Lucilian  word. 

66.  occupat:     'gets    ahead    of 
him,1   explained   in   the  following 
words,  salvere  iubet  prior.      Cf. 
Sat.  i,  9,  6. 

67.  laborem :   an  accus.  of  the 
'  inner    object,'    the     '  object    ef- 
fected ' ;  » he  gives  his  occupation 
as  his  excuse.' 

68.  mane  :  for  the  morning  sa- 
lutatio ;  he  was  aware  that  polite- 
ness required  that  he  should  ac- 
knowledge the  invitation,  though 


he  had  declined  it,  by  the  Roman 
equivalent  for  a  dinner  call. 

68-69.  Qon  providisset :  this  is  im- 
plied by  vs.  66.  —  sic:  correlative 
with  si ;  on  this  condition,  that .  .  . 

70.  ut  libet :  '  as  you  please ' ;  a 
formula  of  assent  (cf.  vs.  19), 
which  would  take  its  tone  from 
the  manner  of  the  speaker. 

72.  dicenda  tacenda :  the  corre- 
sponding  phrases    (prjTa   apptfra, 
fanda  nefanda,  honesta  inhonesta) 
usually  imply  blame,  but  here  it  is 
merely  that  he  was  talkative,  spoke 
of  whatever  came  into  his  head ; 
i.e.,  he  was  at  his  ease  with  his 
patron,  as  he  had  been  in  the  bar- 
ber's shop. 

73.  hie:    nomin.   masc. ;    'the 
man  whom    I    have   described ' ; 
the  story  now  passes  on  to   the 
climax. 

75.  mane:  now  accustomed  to 
the  salutatio,  which  he  had  at  first 
neglected.  —  certus  conviva  :  = 


I.  7,  76] 


HORATI 


'  rura  suburbana  indictis  comes  ire  Latinis. 
Impositus  mannis  arvum  caelumque  Sabinum 
non  cessat  laudare.     Videt  ridetque  Philippus, 
et  sibi  dum  requiem,  dum  risus  undique  quaerit, 

So      dum  septem  donat  sestertia,  mutua  septem 
promittit,  persuadet  uti  mercetur  agellum. 
Mercatur.     Ne  te  longis  ambagibus,  ultra 
quam  satis  est,  morer,  ex  nitido  fit  rusticus  atque 
sulcos  et  vineta  crepat  mera,  praeparat  ulmos, 

85      immoritur  studiis  et  amore  senescit  habendi. 
Verum  ubi  oves  furto,  morbo  periere  capellae, 
spem  mentita  seges,  bos  est  enectus  arando, 


convictor,  a  regular  guest,  as  Hor- 
ace was  a  guest  at  the  table  of 
Maecenas,  Sat.  i,  6,  47. 

76.  indictis  ...  Latinis :    the 
great   Latin   festival    in   April   or 
May,   when    all    public    business 
was  suspended. 

77.  impositus  mannis :  '  in  a  car- 
riage.'   In  Homer  Irnroi.  is  used  for 
the  chariot,  and  the  same  usage 
is    found    occasionally   in   Latin. 
inanni  were  Gallic  ponies  used  for 
driving,  Epod.  4,  14. 

79-81.  requiem,  risus :  relief 
from  the  burden  of  work,  which  he 
expected  to  get  from  the  amuse- 
ment afforded  by  the  experiment. 
—  dum  .  .  .  dum  .  .  .  dum :  the 
second  clause,  dum  donat,  is  quite 
different  in  sense  from  the  first, 
dit in  qnaerit ;  '  seeking  relief  and 
amusement,  by  giving  .  .  .  and 
lending  .  .  .' ;  the  use  of  the 
same  construction  for  the  two  dif- 


ferent thoughts  is  intended  to  give 
the  effect  of  hurrying  the  story 
forward. 

83.  nitido :  as  he  had  been  when 
he  was  sitting  in  the  barber's  booth. 

85.  immoritur,  senescit :  with 
intentional  exaggeration  of  the 
severity  of  a  farmer's  labor.  Cf. 
also  the  description  of  his  former 
life  in  vs.  57. 

86-87.  These  details  also  are 
intentionally  exaggerated  and  are 
mentioned  as  if  they  were  the  or- 
dinary incidents  of  a  farmer's  life, 
in  order  to  make  the  point  of  the 
story  more  effective.  They  are, 
of  course,  in  humorous  contrast  to 
the  idyllic  pictures  of  country  life 
which  Horace  had  so  often  drawn, 
e.g.,  in  Epod.  2.  — periere:  are 
lost.  —  mentita  :  this  figure  is 
often  used;  cf.  Carm.  3,  I,  30, 
and  the  opposite  in  Carm.  3,  1 6, 
30,  segetis  certa  fides. 


64 


EPISTVLAE 


i,  7.  98 


offensus  damnis  media  de  nocte  caballum 
arripit  iratusque  Philippi  tendit  ad  aedes. 

90      Quern  simul  adspexit  scabrum  intonsumquo  Philippus, 
'  Durus,'  ait,  '  Voltei,  nimis  attentusque  videris 
esse  mihi.'     '  Pol  me  miserum,  patrone,  vocares, 
si  velles,'  inquit,  'verum  mihi  ponere  nomen. 
Quod  te  per  genium  dextramque  deosque  Penates 

95      obsecro  et  obtestor,  vitae  me  redde  priori.' 
Qui  semel  adspexit,  quantum  dimissa  petitis 
praestent,  mature  redeat  repetatque  relicta. 
Metiri  se  quemque  suo  modulo  ac  pede  verum  est. 


88.  media  de  nocte:  in  order  to 
get  to  town  in  time  for  the  salu- 
tatio.  And  the  early  hour  ex- 
presses also  his  hasty  determina- 
tion. Cf.  arripit  and  iratus. 

90.  scabrum  intonsumque :  again 
in  contrast  to  the  first  picture,  vs. 
50,  adrasum. 

91.  durus  .  .  .  attentus :  so  the 
country  mouse,  Sat.  2, 6,  82,  asper 
et  attentus  qiiaesitis. 

92.  miserum:    i.e.,   <•  durus  at- 
tentllsq^le  do  not  half  express  my 
condition  ;  you  must  call  me  mise- 
rum? 

94.  quod  :  wherefore;  formulaic 
in  such  sentences  as  this,  with  oro, 
obsecro;  cf.  Verg.  Aen.  2,  141, 


Ter.  Andr.  289.  —  per  genium  : 
the  guardian  spirit  which  attends 
each  man  through  life.  A  modern 
parallel  would  be  '  by  your  own 
soul.1  —  dextram :  your  honor. 

96-97.  This  is  at  bottom  the 
same  moral  as  that  of  Sat.  2,  6, 
and  the  same  situation  as  that  de- 
picted in  Sat.  I,  i,  4  ff. 

98.  modulo  :  the  general  word, 
followed  by  the  more  specific,  pede, 
which  at  the  same  time  suggests 
that  each  man  has  his  own  natural 
standard  in  himself. — verum:  right. 
—  As  at  the  end  of  Sat.  2,  6,  the 
personal  application  of  the  uni- 
versal rule  is  left  to  the  reader. 


8 


This  Epistle  was  written,  either  in  the  summer  of  the  year  20  or  in 
he  next  summer,  to  a  young  friend  who  was  in  the  suite  of  Tiberius  on 
his  mission  to  the  East.  It  goes,  therefore,  with  Epist.  i,  3,  in  which 
also  Celsus  is  mentioned. 

'My  greetings,  O  Muse,  to  Gelsus  !     If  he  asks  of  me,  tell  him  that  I 

HOR.  EP.  —  5  65 


I,  8,  i] 


HORATI 


am  well  in  body,  but  not  in  spirit,  that  I  am  idle  and  hesitating  and 
unsatisfied  with  myself.  Ask,  too,  how  it  is  with  him  and  give  him 
from  me  a  friendly  warning  not  to  misuse  his  fortunes.' 

In  this  note  the  personal  and  the  artistic  motives  are  successfully 

combined.    Both  must  be  kept  in  mind  in  the  interpretation  of  it.    The 

fact  that  it  was  deliberately  selected  for  publication  is  a  warning  against 

taking  the  personal  element  too  seriously  ;  doubtless  the  bit  of  advice 

at  the  end  had  a  real  meaning,  but  neither  that  nor  the  expressions  of 

.^discontent  which  skillfully  pave  the  way  for  the  advice  should  be  over- 

'  interpreted.     The  warning  is  a  very  general  one,  such  as  might  be 

XAA    addressed  to  many  young  men,  and  the  sense  of  dissatisfaction  with 

himself  and  his  work  is  more  than  once  expressed  by  Horace. 
7E  . 

'  ^"Mso  gaudere  et  bene  rem  gerere  Albinovano^ 

_tfsa  rogata*j!efeY,  comiti^cribaeque  Neronis. 
Si  quaeret  quid  agam,  die  multa  et  pulchra  minantem 
|>«^vivere  nee  re,cte  nee  suaviter 
•^   <       co 

X 


baud  quia  grando 
5       coi^tuaent  v/tis  oleamque  momprderit  aestus, 


J       \J^-±S*^~   -   +s-          i     *r^V       \f~  V-~  —  I 

1.  Celso :     mentioned/    with  ft 
message,  in  the  letter  to  Florus, 
Epist.  i,  3,  15  ff. —  The  change  in 
the  order  of  the  names  is  common, 
e.g.,   Epist.     i,  2,  i.  —  gaudere, 
gerere :  i.e ,  ^at'peiv  K<U  cv  7rpaTT«v. 
The  phrase  is  treated  as  a  whole 
and  put  after    refer    ('  take  my 
greeting   and    good   wishes'),  so 
that  the  need  of  the  ordinary  tube 
is  not  felt. 

2.  Musa:  as  if  she  were  a  let- 
ter carrier,  who  was  to  deliver  the 
message  orally.  In  form,  the  whole 
letter  is  therefore  addressed  to  the 
Muse.  —  rogata :   by   Horace ;    at 
my  request.  —  scribae :    private 
secretary,  an  office   of  trust  and 
honor.     Augustus  had  asked  Hor- 
ace to  be  his  secretary.  —  Neronis : 
Tiberius. 


3.  minantem  /  cf.  Sat.  2,  3,  9, 
atquivoltus  erat  mtflta  etpraeclara 
minantis,   used,  as   here,   of  one 
who  is  trying   to   work,  but   not 
succeeding.     Horace  felt  at  times 
very  strongly  the  self-reproach  of  a 
man  who  was  conscious  of  yielding 
to  the  temptation  to  postpone  his 
work. 

4.  nee  recte :    i.e..   not   as   his 
sense  of  right,  his  philosophy,  re- 
quires of  him.  —  nee   suaviter 
consequence   of-  nee  recte ;    'and 


ot  happily.' 
5-6.   These   are  merely  typical 
of  external  discomforts  and  mis- 
fortunes.    They  are  referred  to  or 
suggested  in  other  places  as  perik 
to  which  the  wealthy  are  exposed 
—  longinquis:  i.e.,  in  the  distant 
mountain  pastures  to  which  cattle 


66 


EPISTVLAE 


i,  8, 


nee  quia  longinquis  armentum  aegrotet  in  agris; 
sed  quia  mente  minus  validus  quam  corpore  toto 
nil  audire  velim,  nil  discere,  quod  levet  aegrum ; 
fidis  offendar  medicis,  irascar  amicis,  ^  ,  J^  a^ 
cur  me  funesto  properentrafcereVetSrno; 

gn^re  seqiiaf,  fugiaVn  quae  proforecredam 
Tibur  amdrn  ventosus,  Tibure  RomaTnr 
Post  haec  ut  valeat,  quo  pacto  rem  gerat  et  se, 
ut  placeat  iuveni  raycontare  utque  cohorti. 
SI  dicet  recte,  pripium\gau^re,  subinde 


were  driven  in  the  heat  o&Bummer ; 
cf.  Carm.  i,  31,  5. 

7.  minus  .  .  .  quam :  the  com- 
parison  is   aside   from   the   main 
thought  and  might  have  been  put 
into  a  parenthesis  ;    '  because   in 
weariness   of  mind  —  my   bodily 
health  is  good  enough  —  I  am  un- 
willing. .  .  . '    The  words  corpore 
toto  of  course  serve  as  an  assurance 
to  Celsus. 

8.  '  I    am    unwilling     (cannot 
bring   myself)    to  listen    to    the 
teachings  of  philosophy.'    Almost 
a  repetition  of  Epist.  I,  I,  48. 

9.  medicis :    the    philosophers, 
whose  writings  would  minister  to 
a  mind  diseased. 

10.  cur:    an   indirect    question 
used  instead  of  a  causal  clause ; 
cf.  Carm.  i,  33,  3,  ne  doleas  .  .  . 
neu  .  .  .  decantes  elegos,  cur  tibi 
junior  .  .  .  praeniteat.     It  is  the 
causal  meaning  of  cur  that  makes 
the   substitution   possible.   —  ve- 
terno :    the    many    references    to 
lethargy    as   a   disease    seem    to 


int  to  something  more  definite 
than  the  nervous  breakdown  which 
is  the  modern  counterpart.  The 
abl.  is  after  arcere,  as  after  pro- 
hibere,  Epist.  i,  i,  31. 

1 1 .  sequar :     after    quia,    like  tz^-/* 
offendar,   irascar.  —  The   tenses $    *, 
of  nocuere  and  prof  ore  are  signifi- 
cant and  should  not  be  neglectec 

in  translation.  —  For  the  general 
sense  cf.  Ovid's  phrase  {Met.  7, 
21),  video  meliora  proboque ;  de- 
teriora  sequor. 

12.  ventosus :     fickle    as     the 
wind.    Cf.  the  same  reproach,  put 
into   the   mouth   of  his  slave,  in ' ^ 
Sat.  2,  7,  28,  Romae  rus  optas ; 
absentem  rusticus  urbem  tollis  ad 
astra  levis  (=  ventosus). 

14.  iuveni :  Tiberius,  who  was 
at  this  time  about  twenty-two 
years  old.  —  percontare  :  impera- 
tive, addressed  to  the  Muse  as 
messenger.  —  cohorti :  especially 
the  young  men  mentioned  in 
Epist.  i,  3. 

15     gaudere  :  grammatically  de- 


__  ^ 


67 


I,  8,  1 6] 


HORATI 


praeceptum  auriculis  hoc  instillare  memento : 
ut  tu  fortunam,  sic  nos  te,  Celse,  feremus.Ad. 

pendent  upon  memento ;  '  remem- 
ber to  say  gaudeo,  as  a  polite  mes- 
senger should.' 

17.  The  friendly  little  admo- 
nition to  self-control  in  prosperity 
is  all  the  more  friendly  and  the 


less  likely  to  give  offense  because 
of  the  confessions  of  weakness 
which  form  the  body  of  the  letter 
and  because  of  the  lightness  of 
tone  in  vss.  15-16. 


It  is  altogether  probable,  though  it  is  not  definitely  stated,  that  this 
Epistle  was  written  in  the  year  20,  when  Tiberius  was  making  prepara- 
tions for  his  trip  into  Asia  Minor.  Of  the  Septimius  whom  the  letter 
introduces  nothing  is  known  with  certainty  ;  but  one  of  the  Odes 
(Car»t.  2,  6)  is  addressed  to  a  Septimius,  and  a  man  of  this  name  is 
mentioned  in  a  letter  of  Augustus  to  Horace,  quoted  in  the  Vita  of 
Suetonius,  ^^  fyU^L  J%^fetg£y  ^W-^^CTbJ*  - 

Some  other  letters/  of  introduction  naye  come  down  to  us  (Cic.  ad 
Fam.  2,  14  ;  7,  5  ;  Pliny,  4,  4),  but  none  so  skillful  and  so  charming  as 
this.  Tiberius,  even  as  a  young  man,  was  both  scornful  and  suspicious 
of  the  attentions  paid  to  him  on  account  of  his  relation  to  Augustus, 
but  he  was  not  incapable  of  perceiving  the  mingled  frankness  and  defer- 
ence of  such  a  letter  as  this.  And  he  was  also  a  lover  of  literature,  to 
whom  the  delicate  art  of  expression  and  thought  would  appeal  strongly. 
The  publication  of  the  Epistle  is  evidence  that  it  was  successful. 

Septimius,  Claudi,  nimirum  intellegit  unus, 
a      quanti  me  facias  :  nam  cum  rogat  et  prece  cogit, 
ut  tibi  se  laudare  et  tradere  coner, 

clause,  as  in  Sat.  2,3,  iJ}$;  z,  3, 
240;  2.6,  58;  Epist.  1,15.  36; 
I,  18,  16;  1,20,2;  2,2,44.  It  is 
not,  as  is  commonly  said,  a  corn- 
pound  of  scire  and  licet,  but  a  par- 
atactic  combination  of  the  impv. 
sci  with  licet.  So  iride~licet;-±- 
tradere  :  introduce,  as 


i.  Claudi:  more  formal  than 
Nero.  —  nimirum:  no  doubt,  with 
a  little  touch  of  irony.  In  this 
compound  ni  has  no  conditional 
force,  but  is  the  old  negative,  a 
form  of  ne.  —  unus  :  /.*.,  '  he  and 
he  alone.1 

3.  scilicet  :  continuing  the  ironi- 
cal  tone  ;  to  be  taken  with  the  ut- 


47. 


68 


EPISTVLAE 


dignum  mente  domoque  legentis  noiiesta  JLMeroms, 
munere  cum  fungi  propioris  censet  amici; 
quid  possim  videt  ac  novit  me  valdius  ipso. 
Multa  quidem  dixi,  cur  excusatus  abirem  ; 
sed  timui,  mea  ne  finxisse  minora  putarer, 
dissimulator  opis  propriae,  mihi  commodus  uni 
Sic  ego  maioris  fugiens  opprobria  culpae 

ad  urbanae  descend!  praemia.  .  Quodsi 
um  laudas  ob  arnjoj  iussa  pu^rem, 


r 

['.9.  13 


&*- 


scribe  tui  gregis  hunc  et  fortem  crede  bonumque. 


4.  legentis:     gathering    about 
him,  with  special  reference  to  his 
Eastern  journey.  —  honesta  :     the 
neuter  is  more  general  than  hones- 
ios  would  have  been.  —  Neronis  : 
i.e.,  of  one  who  bears  an  honorable 
name.     With  the  rise  of  Tiberius 
into     prominence     through      his 
mother's    marriage    to    Augustus 
there  was  an  inclination  to  magnify 
the  past  of  his  family,  which  had 
not,  in  fact,  been  especially  promi- 
nent    in     Roman     history.       Cf. 
Carm.  4,  4,  28  and  37  ff. 

5.  munere  fungi:    i.e.,  'That  I 
am  in  the  position  of  an  intimate 
friend ' ;    the  tense  is  significant. 
—  cum:    here  and  in  vs.  2  in  the 
explicative  use,  not  temporal. 

6.  valdius :    stronger  than  me- 
lius ;  '  puts  a  higher  estimate  upon 
my  powers.1 

7.  cur:  cf.  Epist.  i,  8,  10,  note. 
8-9.  mea  .  .  .  minora  :  the  rather 

vague  expression  is  made  more 
definite  in  the  next  line.  —  dissimu- 
lator: cf.  Sat.  i,  10,  13  f.,  parcen- 


tis  viribus  atque  extenuantis  eas 
consulto. — mihi    .  .  .     uni :  i.e., 
1  thinking  only  of  my  own  con-    ^, 
venience.' 

1 1 .  f  rontis  .  .  .  praemia :  '  desir-w 
ing  to  avoid  the  reproach  of  self- 
ishness,  I    have   chosen  to   incur 
the  reproach  —  and,  if  you  choose, 

to  receive  the  reward  also  —  of  ^ 
putting  on  a  bold  front  and  asking 
a  favor.'  —  urbanae  :  '  of  a  man  of 
the  world,'  a  city  man,  less  modest 
than  the  rustic.  —  descendi :  the 
other  course  would  have  shown  a 
loftier  virtue.  —  praemia :  this  is  a 
suggestion  of  the  hope  that  Tibe- 
rius may  be  inclined  to  grant  the 
favor. 

12.  depositum    .   .  .    pudorem : 
the    same    in    sense    as  frontis 
urbanae. 

13.  fortem  .  .  .  bonumque :  the 
only  words  of  praise  of  Septimius 
in   the   letter,  and   all    the    more 
effective    because    they    are    so 
simple. 


69 


I.  io,  I]  HORATI 

10 

There  is  no  definite  indication  of  the  date  oi  this  Epistle  ;  it  may 
have  been  written  about  the  same  time  as  Epist,  1,7. 

Fuscus  Aristius  is  the  friend  who  figures  in  a  humorous  way  in  Sat. 
I,  9,  6 1  ff.  and  to  whom  the  Integer  Vitae  (Carm.  i,  22)  is  addressed. 
He  is  named  also  in  Sat.  i,  io,  83  in  the  list  of  friends  whose  approval 
Horace  regards  with  satisfaction. 

'  Greetings,  my  dear  Fuscus,  to  the  lover  of  town  from  the  lover  of 
the  country.  This  is  an  old  dispute  between  us,  but  I  stand  by  my 
opinion  ;  country  air  and  sleep  and  grass  for  me  !  You  are  all  wrong ; 
that  life  in  town  is  enslaving  you.  Suit  your  life  to  your  needs,  as  I 
mean  to  do,  and  be  content.  I  am  the  picture  of  contentment  at  this 
moment,  writing  in  the  shade  of  that  old  shrine  of  Vacuna  on  my  farm 
—  or  I  should  be  content  if  only  you  were  here.' 

The  thought  of  this  epistle  has  been  so  often  expressed  by  Horace 
that  he  can  scarcely  find  novel  form  for  it.  But  the  fact  that  he  was 
writing  to  a  friend  whose  general  attitude  toward  life  was  harmonious 
with  his  own  gives  to  the  familiar  thoughts  an  easy  simplicity  and  an 
air  of  true  contentment. 

Vrbis  amatorem  Fuscum  salvere  iubemus 
ruris  amatores.     Hac  in  re  scilicetjuna^ 
multum  dissimiles,  at  cetera  paene  gemelli^, 
fraternis  animis  (quicquid  negat  alter,  et  alter) 
5       adnuimus  pariter  vetuli  notique  columbi. 

Tu  nidum  servas ;  ego  laudo  ruris  amoeni  -  A**~A 

rivos  et  musco  circumlita  saxa  nemusque. 

jL^^e^^Ji   A^ /ifl,  r~JT  ^AccfeTt*-* 

1.  salvere  iubemus :  a  common      trast    'with     urbis    amatorem.  — 
formula  of  greeting,  which   here      scilicet :  you  know,  without  irony, 
gives  a  humorous  formality  to  the          5-  adnuimus  :    like    two    doves 
opening  phrase.     The  first  person      'billing  and  cooing.'  —  vetuli   no- 
plural  is  often  used  in  Latin,  e.g.,      tique :     though     these    adjectives 
in  the  letters   of  Cicero,  for  the      agree  with  columbi,  they  are  meant 
singular,  apparently  without  differ-      to  apply  especially  to  Fuscus  and 
ence  of  meaning.  Horace,  whose  friendship  was  in- 

2.  ruris  amatores  :  the  position      timate  and  of  long  standing. 

in  the  line  is  intentional,  to  con-          7.  circumlita :    an  unusual  and 

70 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  10,  16 


/ 


Quid  quaeris  ?     Vivo  et  regno,  simul  ista  reliqui, 
quae  vos  ad  caelum  effertis  rumore  secundo, 
utque  sacerdotis  f ugitivus  liba  recuso ; 
pane  egeo  iam  mellitis  potiore  placentis. 
Vivere  naturae  si  convenienter  oportet 
ponendaeque  domo  quaerenda  est  area  primum, 
novistine  locum  potiorem  rure  beato  ? 
Est  ubi  plus  tepeant  hiemes,  ubi  gratior  aura 
leniat  et  rabiem  Canis  et  momenta  Leonis, 


poetic  word,  as  if  the  moss  were  a 
color  spread  over  the  rock. 

8.  quid    quaeris  ?     a    common 
phrase  in  Terence  and  in  Cicero's 
letters,  to  cut  short  further  details  ; 
lit., '  what  do  you  ask  (want  fur- 
ther) ? '     '  in    short,1  '  what   more 
need  I  say?'      Such  phrases  are 
rather  characteristic  of  Horace  ;  cf. 
ne  te  morer,  qttid  multa?  ne  Ion- 
gum   faciam.  —  vivo    et    regno  : 
with  emphasis  ;  '  I  really  live  and 
am  a  king.'  —  ista  :  in  the  proper 
second  person  sense. 

9.  A  free  quotation  of  an  epic 
phrase ;    Ennius,  Ann.  260,  max 
efferre  domos  populi  rumore  secun- 
do ;  Verg.  Aen.  8,  90,  closes   the 
line  with  rumore  secundo  ;  it  is  in 
sense  the  same  as  summis  laudibus 
ad  caelum  eztulerunt. 

10-11.  liba:  cakes  offered  in 
sacrifice,  and  therefore  very  abun- 
dant in  a  priest's  house,  so  that 
the  slave  had  become  tired  of 
them  and  had  run  away  to  get 
plain  food.  The  condensed  com- 
parison is  made  clearer  in  the  next 


line;  in  which  pane  egeo  explains 
recuso,  and  mellitis  placentis  am- 
plifies liba.  There  is  perhaps  an 
allusion  in  these  lines  to  some 
comic  story  or  play  popular  at  the 
time. 

12.  vivere:    this    is   the    Stoic 
doctrine,  used   somewhat  humor- 
ously,  since    neither    Fuscus   nor 
Horace  was  a  Stoic. 

13.  domo :    dative,  a  rarer  form 
for  domui.    The  whole  expression 
is    condensed ;    '  if   we  ought  to 
live  naturally,  and  if  we  are  seek- 
ing a  place   for   natural  living  — 
as  one  seeks  a  site  for  his  house 
—  then  the  country  is  best.' 

15.  tepeant    hiemes :    i.e.,    the 
winters    in    southern    Italy ;     cf. 
Carm.   2,   6,    17,  ver  ubi  longum 
tepidasque  praebet  luppiter  bru- 
mas,  of  Tarentum.      All  of  Italy 
outside  of  Rome  was  rus. 

16.  momenta  Leonis :  with  po- 
etic   personification  ;    '  the   quick 
movements,'  '  the  rushing  of  the 
Lion,1  further  carried  out  in  furi- 
bundus. 


i,  10,  17] 


HORATI 


cum  semel  accepit  Solem  furibundus  acutum  ? 
Est  ubi  divellat  somnbs  minus  invida  cura  ? 
Deterius  Libycis  olet  aut  nitet  herba  lapillis  ? 
o      Purior  in  vicis  aqua  tendit  rumpere  plumbum, 

quam  quae  per  pronum  trepidat  cum  murmure  rivum  ? 
^Nempe  inter  varias  nutritur  silva  columnas, 
laudaturque  domus  longos  quae  prospicit  agros. 
Naturam  expelles  furca,  tamen  usque  recurret 
25      et  mala  perrumpet  furtim  fastidia  victrix. 
Non,  qui  Sidonio  contendere  callidus  ostro 
nescit  Aquinatem  potantia  vellera  fucum, 


17.  accepit  .  .  .  acutum:      the 
rays  of  the  sun  are  like  sharp  ar- 
rows   that    wound    (accepit)   the 
Lion  and  rouse  him  to  fury- 

18.  somnos :  this  is  one  of  the 
traditional  advantages  of  country 
life,  often  alluded  to  by  Horace. 

19.  Libycis.  .  .  lapillis:  Lybian 
marbles  set  to  make  mosaic  pat- 
terns in  the  floor.  —  olet :  perfumed 
water  was  sprinkled  over  the  floor. 

20.  rumpere     plumbum:      />., 
'rushes   out  of    the   lead  pipes.' 
The  distribution  of   water  under 
pressure  in  pipes  was  well  under- 
stood by  Roman  engineers,  though 
it  was  somewhat  less  elaborately 
carried  out  than  it  is  in  modern 
houses. 

22-23.  nempe :  in  fact,  you 
know;  cf.  Sat.  i,  10,  i. — varias: 
of  the  colored  patterns  of  marble. 
—  silva  :  trees  were  planted  in  the 
open  court  of  a  city  house,  within 
'the  colonnades.  —  prospicit :  the 
hills  of  the  city  afforded  sites  from 


which  a  wide  view  could  be  had. 
Maecenas'  house  on  the  Esqui- 
line  commanded  a  view  of  the 
mountains  toward  the  north  and 
east. 

24.  expelles :  a  paratactic  con- 
dition, with  recurret  as  apodosis. 
The  line  has  become  proverbial ; 
it  is  usually  quoted  with  the  older 
reading  expellas^  which,  however, 
has  no  good  support  from  the  Mss. 

25.  furtim:       'in     unexpected 
fashion,'  '  when  you   least  expect 
it.'  —  victrix:    at  the  end  of  the 
line,  with  emphasis  ;  -and  finally 
win  the  victory.' 

26-29.  '  But,  though  nature  con- 
quers in  the  end,  the  process  of 
learning  to  distinguish  the  real 
from  the  imitation  involves  losses 
and  mistakes,  like  those  which  a 
man  suffers  in  buying  artistic  ob- 
jects without  real  knowledge  of 
the  things  he  is  purchasing.'  - 
Sidonio :  the  genuine  Tyrian  pur- 
ple was  very  expensive.  — callidus : 


72 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  10,  40 


certius  accipiet  damnum  propiusve  medullis, 
quam  qui  non  poterit  vero  distinguere  falsum. 

30  Quern  res  plus  nimio  delectavere  secundae, 
mutatae  quatient.     Si  quid  mirabere,  pones 
invitus.     Fuge  magna  ;  licet  sub  paupere  tecto 
reges  et  regum  vita  praecurrere  amicos. 
Cervus  equum  pugna  melior  communibus  herbis 

31  pellebat,  donee  minor  in  certamine  longo 
imploravit  opes  hominis  frenumque  recepit. 
Sed  postquam  victor  violens  discessit  ab  hoste, 
non  equitem  dorso,  non  frenum  depulit  ore. 
Sic  qui  pauperiem  veritus  potiore  metallis 

40      libertate  caret,  dominum  vehet  improbus  atque 


i.e.,  one  who  believes,  mistakenly, 
that  he  knows  how  to  compare 
(contendere)  and  distinguish  ;  cf. 
.SVzA  2,  3,  23,  and  the  whole  de- 
scription of  such  a  connoisseur, 
vss.  20-25.  —  Aquinatem  .  .  .  fu- 
cum  :  after  potantia ;  a  dye  made 
from  lichens  which  produced  a 
color  like  the  true  Sidonian  pur- 
ple. —  medullis :  to  ^/y  heart.  — 
vero,  falsum :  this  is  a  slight  ref- 
erence to  the  standards  of  philos- 
ophy. 

30-31.  The  same  thought  that 
is  expressed  more  fully  in  Epist. 
i,  6,  9  ff.,  and,  with  more  per- 
sonal reference,  in  the  letter  to 
Maecenas,  Epist.  i,  7.  It  was  a 
familiar  thought  to  Horace.  — 
mirabere:  cf.  Epist.  i,  6,  i,  nil 
admirari.  —  pones  :  almost  tech- 
nical in  this  sense;  Epist.  i,  i, 
10 ;  Sat.  2,  3,  16,  etc. 


34-38.  This  fable  was  often 
used  to  teach  a  serious  lesson ; 
it  is  found  in  Phaedrus,  4,  4.  — 
pugna  melior :  cf.  note  on  Epist. 
i,  7,  29.  —  imploravit:  the  sub- 
ject is  minor,  to  be  taken  as  a 
substantive ;  but  the  omission  of 
a  more  definite  subject  is  in  the 
manner  of  fables. 

37.  violens:  i.e.,  'after  a  fierce 
contest ' ;  to  be  joined  with  dis- 
cessit, not  directly  with  victor. 

39.  metallis  :  one  of  the  various 
ways   of  expressing    the    general 
idea  of  riches;  cf.  Engl.  'a  gold 
mine.1     Horace    uses    the    word 
only  here. 

40.  improbus  :  /  e.,  i  because  of 
his  immoderate  desire  for  wealth' ; 
cf.  Cann.  3,  24,  62,  improbae  cres- 
cttnt  divitiae,  in  a  context  similar 
to  this. 


73 


I,  10,  41] 


HORATI 


serviet  aeternum,  quia  parvo  nesciet  uti. 

Cui  non  conveniet  sua  res,  ut  calceus  olim, 

si  pede  maior  erit,  subvertet,  si  minor,  uret. 

Laetus  sorte  tua  vives  sapienter,  Aristi, 
45      nee  me  dimittes  incastigatum,  ubi  plura 

cogere  quam  satis  est,  ac  non  cessare  videbor. 

Imperat  aut  servit  collecta  pecunia  cuique, 

tortum  digna  sequi  potius  quam  ducere  funem. 

Haec  tibi  dictabam  post  fanum  putre  Vacunae, 
50      excepto  quod  non  simul  esses,  cetera  laetus. 


41.  serviet:   this  is  the  theme 
of  Sat.  2,  7. —  uti:  as  in  Sat.  i, 
!>  37  ?  2>  3>  IO9-  J67,  and  often. 

42.  conveniet:     cf.    vs.     12. — 
olim,  sometimes. 

44-46.  <  Live  content,  therefore, 
and  remind  me  of  this  admonition, 
if  I  seem  to  you  to  need  it.'  — ces- 
sare: as  in  Epist.  i,  7,  57. 

47-48.  The  thought  is  expressed 
more  diffusely  by  Seneca,  de  Vita 
Beat.  26,  I,  '  divitiae  enim  apud 
sapientem  virum  in  servitute  sunt, 
apud  stultum  in  imperio.' —  tor- 
tum .  .  .  funem :  the  line  repeats 
in  a  figurative  form  the  thought 
of  imperat  ( =  ducere)  aut  servit 
(  =  seqiti).  but  the  allusion  is  to 
some  custom  or  some  story  which 


is  unknown  to  us ;  it  may  be  the 
figure  of  an  animal  led  by  a  rope, 
or  of  a  machine  of  which  a  rope 
forms  part.  Cf.  note  on  Epist. 

1,  6,  51,  trans  ponder  a,  and  Sat. 

2,  7,  20.  —  tortum :  an  ornamental 
epithet. 

49-50.  As  the  letter  begins  with 
a  formal  greeting,  so  it  closes  with 
a  formal  giving  of  the  exact  place 
of  writing.  In  Cicero's  letters  the 
place  is  usually  named  at  the  end 
of  the  letter,  if  at  all.  —  dictabam : 
the  epistolary  imperfect ;  see  gram- 
mar. —  putre  :  '  falling  into  decay.' 
—  Vacunae:  a  local  goddess.  The 
meaning  of  the  name  is  quite  un- 
known.—  laetus:  with  reference 
back  to  vs.  44. 


II 

There  is  nothing  to  fix  the  date  of  this  Epistle  nor  is  Bullatius,  to 
whom  it  was  addressed,  mentioned  elsewhere. 

'  And  how  do  you  like  the  famous  cities  of  Asia,  my  friend  ?  Are  you 
thinking  of  home  or  of  settling  down  there,  far  from  the  world?  But 
one  doesnt  settle  down  for  life  in  some  inn,  just  because  one  is  tired 

74 


EPISTVLAE  [i,  ii,  8 

of  travel.  Pleasant  scenery  will  not  make  you  happy.  It  is  better  to 
stay  at  home  and  sing  the  joys  of  travel  at  your  ease.  For  happiness  is 
not  in  some  distant  future  or  in  some  far-off  country ;  it  is  here  and 
now,  in  our  own  hearts,  if  we  are  wise  enough  to  take  it.' 

Horace  was  not  a  traveler.  He  went  to  Athens  in  early  life  for  study, 
but  after  his  return  his  life  was  spent  in  the  neighborhood  of  Rome  or 
about  Tarentum.  He  was  free  from  that  form  of  restlessness  which 
seeks  excitement  in  novelty  and  was  perhaps  not  quite  just  to  those 
who  find  stimulus  in  sight  seeing.  In  this  Epistle  he  has  used  the 
fact  that  Bullatius  was  abroad  as  an  occasion  for  restating  the  doctrine 
which  he  often  preaches,  that  the  sources  of  happiness  are  within,  set- 
ting it  in  contrast  to  the  pleasures  of  travel. 

Quid  tibi  visa  Chios,  Bullati,  notaque  Lesbos, 
quid  concinna  Samos,  quid  Croesi  regia  Sardis, 
Smyrna  quid  et  Colophon?     Maiora  minorane  fama? 
Cunctane  prae  campo  et  Tiberino  flumine  sordent? 
5       An  venit  in  votum  Attalicis  ex  urbibus  una  ? 
An  Lebedum  laudas  odio  maris  atque  viarum  ? 
Scis  Lebedus  quid  sit ;  Gabiis  desertior  atque 
Fidenis  vicus  :  tamen  illic  vivere  vellem, 

1-3.   These  are   the   names   of  in  Rome.  —  sordent :  t.g., '  do  they 

cities   in   Asia   Minor,  known   in  all  seem  poor  in  comparison  .  .  .  ? ' 

history  and  in  literary  tradition  to  This  implies  the  answer  minora  to 

all  Romans,  even  those  who  had  the  previous  question, 

not  visited  them,  as  European  cities  5.   venit   in   votum:   suit  your 

are    known    to     Americans.     Cf.  desires;  this  is  an   expansion   of 

Catull.  46,  6,  ad  claras  Asiae  vole-  maiora.     For   the   expression  cf. 

tnusurbes. — nota :  ==  nobilis  ;  Les-  Sat.  2,  6,  i,  hoc  erat  in  votis. — 

bos  was  the  home  of  Alcaeus  and  Pergamum  was  the  most  famous  of 

Sappho.  —  concinna  :      handsome,  the  cities  of  Attalus. 

with  reference   apparently  to  the  6-10.    '  Or  are  you  so  weary  of 

regularity  of  the  streets.  —  Sardis :  travel  that  a  deserted  village  seems 

the  Greek  nom.  plur.  SapSeis- —  good  enough  to  you  ?     Icanunder- 

fama  :  i.e.,  'than  you  had  expected  stand  that  feeling  easily.'  —  Lebe- 

from  what  you  had  heard  of  them.'  dum:  a  small  town  on  the  coast 

4.    campo  :  the  Campus  Martius,  near  Smyrna. — odio  maris:  Hor- 

standing  for  all  the  familiar  spots  ace  was  not  a  traveler;  cf.  Carm. 

75 


,  9] 


HORATI 


10 


oblitusque  meorum  obliviscendus  et  illis 
Neptunum  procul  e  terra  spectare  furentem. 
Sed  neque  qui  Capua  Romam  petit,  imbre  lutoque 
adspersus  volet  in  caupona  vivere ;  nee  qui 
frigus  collegit,  furnos  et  balnea  laudat 
ut  fortunatam  plene  praestantia  vitam ; 
nee,  si  te  validus  iactaverit  Auster  in  alto, 
idcirco  navem  trans  Aegaeum  mare  vendas. 
Incolumi  Rhodos  et  Mitylene  pulchra  facit,  quod 
paenula  solstitio,  campestre  nivalibus  auris, 


2,  6,  7,  lasso  marts  et  viarutn. — 
Gabii  and  Fidenae,  which  were 
towns  of  importance  in  earlier  his- 
tory, were  in  Horace's  time  only 
villages.  —  vellem:  the  tense  im- 
plies that  it  is  a  mere  expression 
of  emotion,  without  expectation  of 
fulfilment.  —  '  The  world  forget- 
ting, by  the  world  forgot'  (Pope). 
—  The  comparison  of  a  peaceful 
life  to  the  contentment  of  one  who 
looks  from  shore  at  the  wild  sea  is 
frequent  in  literature.  The  best 
expression  of  it  is  in  Lucr.  2,  1-2, 
'suave,  mari  magno  turbantibus 
aequora  ventis,  e  terra  magnum 
alterius  spectare  laborem.' 

ii.  '  But  such  a  life  would  not 
be  truly  satisfying.'  —  Capua  Ro- 
mam :  i.e.,  to  one  who  is  going 
toward  the  great  city,  which  is  his 
home.  —  imbre  lutoque  :  this  cor- 
responds to  odio  marts  atqut  via- 
rum,  vs.  6;  these  things  are  the 
temporary  discomforts  of  travel, 
from  which  we  get  only  a  tempo- 
rary refuge  im  an  inn. 


12.  caupona   vivere :   the  figure 
of  an  inn  as  a  temporary  resting 
place,  but  not  a  home  to  live  in 
(vivere  is  emphatic),  is  used  fre- 
quently in   classic  as  well  as  in 
Christian  writings. 

13.  frigus  collegit :  'has  become 
chilled,'  not  '  caught  cold.'  —  fur- 
nos :    bakers'    shops,    where    one 
could  get  warm. 

16.  vendas :    i.e.,   give    up  the 
plan  of  completing  the  journey  and 
settle  in  Asia  Minor.     This  brings 
the    thought    back    to    the    main 
theme. 

17.  incolumi :  'a  man  of  sound 
mind' ;  cf.  Sat.  2,  3,  132,  incolumi 
capite  (  —  samts).     The  dat.  is  to 
betaken  with  facit,  as  in  Sat.  I,  I, 
63,  quid  facias  illif  and  often  in 
Plautus. — pulchra:   'in    spite  of 
its  beauty.'  —  facit  quod:  i.e.,  'is 
the  same  as,'  '  has  the  same  effect 
as.' 

18-19.  Four  illustrations  of 
things  that  are,  in  the  special  cir- 
cumstances, particularly  useless. — 


EPISTVLAE 


[IP  ".3«> 


per  brumam  Tiberis,  Sextili  mense  caminus. 

20      Dum  licet  ac  vultum  servat  Fortuna  benign  urn, 
Romae  laudetur  Samos  et  Chios  et  Rhodes  absens. 
Tu  quamcumque  deus  tibi  fortunaverit  horam 
grata  sume  manu,  neu  dulcia  differ  in  annum  ; 
ut  quocumque  loco  fueris  vixisse  libenter 

25      te  dicas.     Nam  si  ratio  et  prudentia  curas, 
non  locus  effusi  late  maris  arbiter  aufert, 
caelum,  non  animum,  mutant  qui  trans  mare  currunt; 
strenua  nos  exercet  inertia  ;  navibus  atque 
quadrigis  petimus  bene  vivere ;  quod  petis,  hie  est, 
est  Vlubris,  animus  si  te  non  deficit  aequus. 


3° 

paenula :  a  heavy  cloak  for  cold 
weather.  —  campestre  :  a  very  light 
garment  worn  about  the  loins  in 
taking  vigorous  exercise. 

20.  The  line  is  an  expansion  of 
incolumi]  'so  long  as  I  am   not 
driven  to  foreign  travel.' 

21 .  Romae  :  the  emphatic  word ; 
'  I  will  stay  at  home  and  sing  the 
praises   of  foreign   cities    without 
seeing  them  (absens}. ' 

22-24.  The  mistake  of  overlook- 
ing present  happiness  in  the  antici- 
pation of  some  other  happiness  in 
the  future  is,  at  bottom,  the  same 
as  the  mistake  of  looking  for  con- 
tentment in  change  of  place.  The 
two  thoughts  are  really  identified 
here,  though  in  form  the  second  is 
treated  as  the  purpose  of  the  first ; 
'  just  as  you  should  gratefully  enjoy 
the  present,  so  you  should  live 
happily  in  the  place  where  you 
may  happen  to  be.1  The  thought 
of  vss.  22-23  is  often  expressed 


by  Horace,  e.g.   Carm.   i,  9;    I, 
11. 

25.  ratio:  as  in  Sat.  i,  i,  2. — 
curas :  after  auferunt,  to  be  sup- 
plied from  aufert. 

26.  arbiter :  in  the  early  mean- 
ing  witness,  i.e.,  (  having  a  wide 
outlook  over  the  sea,'  with  refer- 
ence back  to  vss.  7-10. 

27.  One  of  the  lines  of  Horace 
that   has   become  proverbial,  be- 
cause it  expresses  so  concisely  a 
truth  of  universal  experience. 

28-30.  strenua  inertia :  an  in- 
tentional putting  together  of  two 
contradictory  words,  like  splendide 
mendax,  to  characterize  the  idle 
activity  of  the  pleasure  seeker.  — 
navibus.  quadrigis  :  cf.  Carm.$,  I, 
yj-^p,post  equitem  sedet  atra  cur  a. 
—  hie:  'where  we  are  now.1  — 
Vlubris:  /.<?.,  in  any  little  village; 
there  is  no  implication  that  Horace 
was  in  Ulubrae.  —  animus  ...  ae- 
quus :  the  same  as  incolumi^  vs.  I  *• 


77 


i,  12!  HORATI 


12 

This  Epistle  was  written  in  the  summer  of  the  year  20  B.C.,  as  the 
closing  lines  show.  The  person  addressed,  Iccius,  is  the  same  young 
man  to  whom,  some  five  or  six  years  before,  Horace  had  written  an  ode. 
Carm.  i,  29.  He  is  otherwise  unknown,  but  some  traits  of  character 
are  clearly  revealed  by  the  tone  in  which  Horace  addresses  him.  He 
was  one  of  the  circle  of  younger  men  whom  Horace  knew  well,  a  stu- 
dent of  philosophy,  though  probably  not  a  serious  scholar.  He  was 
not  rich  and  was  looking  for  an  opportunity  to  make  his  way  in  the 
world.  This  he  had  sought  to  find  by  joining  the  expedition  of  Callus 
against  the  Persians  and  after  the  failure  of  this  campaign  he  had  be- 
come the  agent  of  Agrippa,  taking  charge  of  his  estates  in  Sicily.  This 
Epistle  was  written  in  reply  to  a  letter  from  Iccius,  in  which  there  was 
some  expression  of  dissatisfaction  with  his  position  and  of  regret  that 
business  interfered  with  philosophy. 

'The  trusted  agent  of  Agrippa,  my  dear  young  friend,  should  not  call 
'  himself  a  poor  man.  If  one  has  plenty  to  eat  and  health  to  enjoy  it,  he 
is  as  rich  as  a  king.  Or  if  you  have  turned  vegetarian,  no  amount  of 
money  will  make  any  difference  to  such  a  philosopher.  You  are  a 
greater  wonder  than  Democritus,  to  be  so  active  in  business  and  at  the 
same  time  so  deep  in  philosophy.  But,  whether  you  are  living  high  or 
have  become  an  ascetic,  don't  neglect  my  friend  and  your  neighbor, 
Pompeius  Grosphus  ;  he  is  a  man  you  can  trust. 

'The  news  at  Rome  is  all  cheerful  ;  victories  everywhere  and  a  fine 
harvest  in  Italy.' 

This  is,  in  form,  one  of  the  most  successful  of  the  Epistles.  It  is 
precisely  such  a  letter  as  might  have  been  written  in  prose,  com- 
menting upon  the  letter  to  which  it  is  a  reply,  recommending  a  friend 
to  the  notice  of  the  recipient  and  giving  in  brief  the  news  of  the 
day.  Its  tone,  too,  is  entirely  personal,  as  if  it  were  meant  to  be 
read  only  by  the  person  addressed,  and  that  tendency  to  fall  into  the 
essay  manner,  which  in  some  of  the  letters  is  out  of  harmony  with  the 
epistolary  form,  is  here  the  more  easily  avoided,  because  the  interest  of 
Iccius  in  philosophy  makes  the  introduction  of  that  subject  quite 
natural.  At  the  same  time,  the  personal  matters  are  so  treated  as 
to  be  of  general  interest,  and  the  revelation  of  the  character  of  both 
writer  and  recipient  is  most  attractive.  In  lightness  of  touch  and  in 
humorous  irony  this  letter  resembles  Epist.  I,  3,  also  addressed  to  a 
younger  friend. 

7« 


EPISTVLAE 


[If  12,  8 


Fructibus  Agrippae  Siculis,  quos  colligis,  Icci, 

si  recte  frueris,  non  est  ut  copia  maior 

ab  love  donari  possit  tibi.     Tolle  querellas, 

pauper  enim  non  est,  cui  rerum  suppetit  usus. 

Si  ventri  bene,  si  lateri  est  pedibusque  tuis,  nil 

divitiae  poterunt  regales  addere  maius. 

Si  forte  in  medio  positorum  abstemius  herbis 

vivis  et  urtica,  sic  vives  protinus,  ut  te 


1.  fructibus ;  revenues,  but  with 
special  reference  to  revenue  derived 
from  an  estate. 

2.  recte :  not  in  the  philosophical 
sense,  but  properly, '  as  you  have  a 
a  right  to  do.'     The  general  mean- 
ing of  the  word  is  specialized  by 
its  connection  with  frtttris. 

3.  querellas:    laments  over  his 
poverty ;  the  exhortation  does  not 
imply  that  Iccius  was  over-anxious 
to  be  rich,  but  only  that  he  was 
inclined  to  regret  the  necessity  of 
earning  his  living   as  a  business 
man  in  Sicily. 

4.  rerum  .  . .  usus :  no  more  than 
quod  satis  est,  that  sufficient  supply 
of  the  necessaries  of  life  to  which 
men  should  limit  their  desires. 

5.  ventri,  lateri,  pedibus :  i.e.  'if 
your  wants  are  supplied  and  your 
health    is    good.1     The    form    in 
which  the  general  thought  is  ex- 
pressed   is  taken    from    a   Greek 
proverb  (Theognis,  719),  but  Hor- 
ace uses   the  same   words   often, 
putting   specific  illnesses    in    the 
place  of  some  general   term ;   cf. 
latus  out  renes,  Epist.  i,  6,   28; 


laterum    dolor,    Sat.     I,    9,    32; 
podagrant,  Epist.  i,  2,  52. 

6.  The  same  as  non  est  ut  copia 
maior ;  cf.  also  Epist.  i,  4,  7-8. 

7.  forte :   the   addition   of  this 
word   prevents   the   condition,   si 
vivis,  from    assuming  that  he  is 
actually  living  an  ascetic  life.     The 
two  conditions,  si  ventri  bene  est 
and  si  vivis  herbis,  thus  present 
the     two     possible     alternations, 
without  choosing  between  them ; 
'whether  you  are  living  on  the  fat 
of  the  land  or  are,  perhaps,  a  vege- 
tarian, in  either  case  you  are  in- 
dependent of  money  and  have  no 
right  to  call  yourself  pauper.' — in 
medio  positorum  :  the  gen.  depends 
on  abstemius,  which  takes  the  abl. 
or  the  gen.  without  distinction  of 
meaning.     For    in   medio  posit  a, 
'things  that  are  within  the  reach 
of  everybody,'  cf.  Sat.  I,  2,  108. 

8.  urtica :    nettles,   more    often 
referred    to    for    their    medicinal 
properties  ;  here  used  only  to  give  a 
humorous  definiteness  to  the  gen- 
eral word  Jierbis.  —  sic :  in  the  same 
•way.  —  protinus:   of   time;   'you 


79 


',   12,9] 


HORATI 


confcstim  liquidus  Fortunae  rivus  inauret ; 
to      vel  quia  naturam  mutare  pecunia  nescit, 

vel  quia  cuncta  putas  una  virtute  minora. 

Miramur,  si  Democriti  pecus  edit  agellos 

cultaque,  dum  peregre  est  animus  sine  corpore  velox, 

cum  tu  inter  scabiem  tantam  et  contagia  lucri 
15      nil  parvum  sapias  et  adhuc  sublimia  cures: 

quae  mare  compescant  causae  ;  quid  temperet  annum  ; 

stellae  sponte  sua  iussaene  vagentur  et  errent ; 

from  his  body  and  roamed  the  uni- 
verse. —  cum :  adversative.  —  sca- 
biem :  the  figurative  use  is  rare 
and  is  therefore  defined  by  contagia 
Inert ;  '  contagious  itching  for 
pelf  (Wilkins).  Iccius,  in  his 
work  as  overseer  of  Agrippa's  es- 
tates,  was  in  the  closest  contact 
with  the  money -making  instincts. 

—  nil  parvum  :  />., '  are  indifferent 
to  all    this,'   'regard   all    this  as 
petty ' ;    then  the   thought  is   re- 
peated in  positive  form  in  sublimia. 

—  adhuc  :  still,  '  as  you  did  when 
I  wrote  my  ode  about  you.'  —  sub- 
limia :   lofty  themes,  both  in  the 
general    sense    and    with    special 
reference    to   astronomical    ques- 
tions. 

16.  compescant:    i.e.,  why   the 
sea,  in  spite  of  all  the  rivers  that 
empty  into  it,  does  not  rise,  but  is 
confined  within  fixed  bounds.     Cf. 
Lucr.  6,  608.  —  temperet :  '  divides 
the  year  into  seasons ' ;  cf.  Carm. 
i,  12,  16. 

17.  sponte  sua :  the  Stoic  doc- 
trine was   that  the   planets   were 
self-moved     and     were     therefore 


will  go  right  on  living.'  —  ut :  con- 
cessive ;  even  though. 

9.  The  river  Pactolus,  in  which 
Midas  bathed  to  rid  himself  of  the 
'Golden  Touch,'  had  come  to  be 
thought  of  as  having  the  power  to 
gild   with   its   waters,  and   so    is 
proverbial  as  a  source  of  wealth. 
Cf.  Epod.  15,  20,  tibique  Pactolus 
flitat. 

10.  Cf.  Epod.  4,  6,  for  tuna  non 
mutat genus ;  in  this  case,  however, 
the  general  truth  is  intended  to 
convey  a  compliment. 

u.  This  also  is  complimentary 
and  leads  on  to  the  detailed  refer- 
ences to  the  interest  of  Iccius  in 
philosophical  studies. 

12-15.  'The  stock  illustration  of 
the  philosopher's  absorption  in  his 
speculations  is  feeble  compared  to 
your  interest.'  —  Democriti :  of 
Abdera,  the  early  teacher  of  the 
atomic  theory  of  matter.  The 
story  is  told  in  various  forms ;  here 
the  allusion  is  to  his  neglect  of  his 
farm  because  he  was  so  intent  upon 
scientific  study.  —  peregre  :  his 
mind,  as  it  were,  separated  itself 


80 


EPISTVLAE 


[l,  12,  21 


quid  premat  obscurum  lunae,  quid  proferat  orbem ; 
quid  velit  et  possit  rerum  concordia  discors ; 
Empedocles  an  Stertinium  deliret  acumen.^- 
Verum  seu  piscis  sen  porrum  et  caepe  trucidas, 


themselves  divine.  The  atomic 
theory  brought  them  under  the 
rule  of  physical  law  (iussae). 

18.  obscurum:     predicate    with 
premat.     The  question  is   in   re- 
gard to  the  changes  of  the  moon 
from  crescent  to  full  circle  (orbc/ti), 

19.  quid  velit :    in    the    direct 
form,   quid   vis    tibi?      (Sat.    i, 
2,   69),    'what    do    you    mean?' 
In    the  indirect   form,  quid  .  .  . 
ista  velit  sibi  fabula,   Sat.  2,    5, 
61.     'What  is  the  meaning  and 
what    the    powers   of  .  .    .    ? '  — 
concordia  discors :  cf.  strenua  in- 
ertia, Epist.    I,    II,   28.     In   the 
atomic   theory  all    motion   is   the 
result  of  two  forces,  attraction  and 
repulsion,  love  and  hate,  which  are 
opposed  and  yet  work  out  a  har- 
monious  result.     The   expression 
concordia  discors  is  used  by  many 
writers. 

20.  Empedocles  :  of  Agrigentum, 
a  follower   of  Pythagoras   and   a 
physicist ;    his  name  is  suggested 
by  vs.   19,  and   he  is  mentioned 
as  a  representative  of  the  school 
which     explained     natural     phe- 
nomena by  purely  physical  causes. 
—  Stertinium :    a    Stoic    philoso- 
pher,  whose    supposed   discourse 
on  the  madness  of  men  forms  the 
main  part  of  Sat.  2,  3.     He  may 
have  been  of  the  Ciceronian  period. 

HOR.  EP.  —  6  8t 


He  is  here  used  in  a  humorous 
spirit  as  the  counterpart  to  Emped- 
ocles, standing  for  Stoic  doctrines. 
The  name  is  in  the  adj.  form, 
without  change,  agreeing  with 
acumen.  For  the  epic  use  of  the 
abstract  noun  cf.  Sat.  2, 1,  72,  vir- 
tus Scipiadae.  —  deliret :  a  Stoic 
word,  used  of  the  madness  of 
stultitia,  here  employed  in  humor- 
ous contrast  with  acumen. 

21.  'But  whatever  may  be  your 
mode  of  living  (vss.  5-8)  or  your 
philosophical  tenets  (vss.  16-20), 
make  the  acquaintance  of  Gros- 
phus.' — Many  systems  of  philoso- 
phy have  run  over  into  dietetic 
regulations,  connected  in  some 
cases  with  the  more  important  doc- 
trines. Th  e  Py  t  hagorean  doctri  ne 
of  the  transmigration  of  souls  was 
thus  connected  with  the  forbidding 
of  certain  articles  of  food,  animal 
and  even  vegetable,  on  the  ground 
that  the  use  of  such  food  involved 
the  taking  of  life.  Many  of  the 
allusions  are  evidently  parody,  as 
here  trucidas  is  humorous.  — 
piscis :  standing  for  good  living, 
vs.  5. — porrum  et  caepe:'  leeks 
and  onions,  the  her  bis  et  urtica  of 
vss.  7-8.  The  description  is  in 
all  these  cases  (5,  7-8,  21)  humor- 
ously phrased,  with  no  attempt  at 
precision,  so  that  the  use  of  piscis 


Jt  12,  22] 


HORATI 


utere  Pompeio  Grospho  et  si  quid  petet  ultro 
defer :  nil  Grosphus  nisi  verum  orabit  et  aequum. 
Vilis  amicorum  est  annona,  bonis  ubi  quid  dest. 
25      Ne  tamen  ignore^  quo  sit  Romana  loco  relf: 
Cantaber  Agrippae,  Claudi  virtute  Neronis 
Armenius  cecidit ;  ius  imperiumque  Phraates 
Caesaris  accepit  genibus  minor  ;  aurea  fruges 
Italiae  pleno  defundit  Copia  cornu. 


for  high  living  is  not  surprising  or 
doubtful. 

22.  Pompeio  Grospho:  Carrn. 
2,  16  is  addressed  *o  him,  and 
alludes  to  his  having  estates  in 
Sicily.  —  ultro  :  with  defer. 

24.  annona:  properly  the  year's 
harvest,  then  the  price  of  grain, 
which  depended  on  the  harvest, 
and  in  turn  influenced  all  prices. 
Here  figuratively ;  '  it  costs  but 
little  to  secure  friends,  when  those 
who  ask  the  price  are  good  men.' 
^ — dest:  =  deest.  The  thought  is 
the  same  as  that  in  quid  peiit,  not 
that  Grosphus  would  necessarily 
be  asking  for  help,  but  that  Iccius 
need  not  hesitate  out  of  fear  that 
he  might  make  inconvenient  de- 
mands. 

26-29.  The  news  of  the  day, 
given  in  condensed  form,  with 
little  touches  of  half-humorous 


poetic  phrasing.  —  Agrippa,  the 
patron  of  Iccius,  put  down  an  up- 
rising in  Spain  in  the  summer  of 
20  B.C.  —  The  expedition  of  Ti- 
berius, to  which  reference  is  made 
in  many  of  the  Epistles,  resulted 
in  the  submission  of  Armenia.  — 
Phraates,  king  of  Parthia,  restored 
to  Augustus,  through  Tiberius,  the 
Roman  standards  taken  long  be- 
fore, when  Crassus  was  defeated. 
The  formalities  of  the  occasion  are 
alluded  to  in  genibus  minor  ('in- 
terior by  his  kneeling'),  and  both 
this  event  and  the  conquest  of  Ar- 
menia are  commemorated  on  coins 
of  the  period  and  mentioned  by 
Augustus  in  the  Monumentum 
Ancyranum.  —  defundit :  present 
tense :  the  harvest  was  just  coming 
in.  There  had  been  serious  trouble 
from  a  bad  harvest  in  22  B.C. 


13 

The  first  three  books  of  the  Odes  were  published  in  the  year  23.  At 
that  time  Augustus  was  still  in  Italy,  in  or  near  Rome,  and  Horace  sent 
to  him  an  early  copy  of  the  three  volumes.  The  bearer  of  the  gift  was 
Vinnius  Asina  (or  perhaps  Asellus),  of  whom  nothing  is  known  except 

82 


EPISTVLAE  [if  13,  4 

by  inference  from  this  letter.  The  Epistle  is  supposed  to  be  a  hasty 
note,  sent  by  a  messenger  to  overtake  Vinnius  before  he  reached  Rome 
and  to  remind  him  again  of  the  author's  instructions  in  regard  to  the 
manner  in  which  the  gift  should  be  presented  to  Augustus. 

'This  is  to  remind  you  again,  Vinnius,  to  be  careful.  Don't  make  a 
nuisance  of  yourself  ;  your  name,  you  see,  exposes  you  to  jibes.  And 
do  try  to  be  graceful ;  don't  carry  my  books  under  your  arm  like  a  com- 
mon bundle.  And  don't  brag  about  them,  either.  Remember  what 
I've  told  you  and  do  be  careful.' 

This  is  not  an  actual  letter,  sent  after  Vinnius,  but  a  humorous 
Epistle  handed  to  him  with  the  books  and  intended  in  reality  for 
Augustus.  There  is  not  a  serious  word  in  it ;  the  elaborate  and  fussy 
advice,  the  permission  to  throw  the  book  away,  the  reference  to  the 
badness  of  the  road,  are  all  fictitious.  Vinnius  was  not  a  country  clown, 
but  a  common  friend  of  Augustus  and  Horace,  who  undertook  the  little 
commission  for  the  poet,  doubtless  with  pride.  Nor  was  Augustus 
so  remote  and  great  a  personage  that  Horace  felt  it  to  be  necessary 
to  approach  him  with  elaborate  caution.  All  this  belongs  to  the 
machinery,  as  it  were,  of  the  little  play. 

The  facts  were,  in  reality,  something  like  this :  in  sending  a  copy 
of  his  completed  lyrics  to  Augustus,  Horace  desired  to  write  a  note  of 
presentation,  like  an  inscription  on  a  flyleaf.  Seeking  to  avoid  the 
commonplace  forms,  he  hit  upon  the  little  fiction  of  pretending  great 
anxiety  about  the  reception  of  the  gift  and  of  expressing  his  anxiety  in 
these  fussy  and  exaggerated  directions  to  the  bearer.  The  note  was, 
of  course,  to  be  shown  to  Augustus. 

Vt  proficiscentem  docui  te  saepe  diuque, 
Augusto  reddes  signata  volumina,  Vinni, 
si  validus,  si  laetus  erit,  si  denique  poscet ; 
ne  studio  nostri  pecces,  odiumque  libellis 

1.  proficiscentem:    'when    you  and  under  the  care  of  physicians, 
were  starting,'  as  if  this  letter  had  — denique:  this  changes  the  con- 
been  sent  to  overtake  him  on  the  dition    into    a    temporal    clause ; 
journey.  'and  not  until   he  shall   ask   for 

2.  signata:  i.e.,  'with  the  seal  it.'  —  poscet:    it  is   implied    that 
unbroken,'  in  good  condition.  Augustus  already  knew  that  a  copy 

3.  si  validus  :    the    conditions  of  the  book  was  to  be  sent  to  him. 
are  emphatic;    'only  in  case  he  4-5.   The  adjuration  not  to  be 
is.   .  .  .'    Augustus  was  often  ill  overzealous    is    intentionally    re- 

83 


».  13.  5] 


HORATI 


;  sedulus  importes  opera  vehemente  minister. 
Si  te  forte  meae  gravis  uret  safcina  chartae, 
abicito  potius  quam,  quo  perferre  iuberis, 

/-tAilitellas  ferus  impingas  Asinaeque  paternura 
cognomen  vertas  in  risum  et  fabula  fias. 

to      Viribus  uteris  per  clivos,  flumina,  lamas; 
victor  propositi  simul  ac  perveneris  illuc, 
sic  positum  servabis  onus,  ne  forte  sub  ala 
fasciculum  portes  librorum  ut  rusticus  agnum, 


peated  in  various  forms  in  studio      8,  fabula  quanta  fui,  Juv.  10,  167. 


tiostri,  sedulus  minister,  and  opera 
vehemente,  as  if  to  express  the  ex- 
treme anxiety  of  the  writer. 

6-9.  The  lines  are,  of  course, 
wholly  humorous,  to  introduce 
the  joke  on  the  cognomen  of  Vin- 
nius.  —  gravis  .  .  .  sarcina :  a  jest 
at  the  books  themselves,  not  un- 
like the  Engl.  '  heavy  reading.' 
The  three  volumes  of  the  Odes 
would  be  in  fact  a  very  light  parcel. 
—  uret:  gall;  cf.  Epist.  I,  10,  43. 
The  word  is  selected  in  anticipa- 
tion of  the  joke  on  Asina.  —  quo : 
supply  an  antecedent,  ibi,  to  go 
with  impingas ;  '  rather  than  carry 
it  all  the  way  and  then  dash  it 
down  in  the  very  presence  of 
Augustus  and  his  friends.1  — 
lerus :  'like  an  angry  mule.'  — 
Asinae  :  both  this  name  and  the 
other  form,  Asellus,  are  known 
to  have  been  in  actual  use  in 
several  families.  —  paternum  :  i.e., 
an  inherited  cognomen  and  not 
one  given  in  derision  to  Vinnius 
himself.  —  fabula:  so  Epod.  n, 


ut  .  .  .  dcclamatio  fias. 

10.  viribus  uteris  :  fut.,  like  red- 
des,  ser-uabis',  'use  your  strength 
where  it  is  called  for,  on  the  road, 
but   when    you   arrive   carry  the 
books  gracefully.'  —  lamas  :   bogs, 
mudholes.      The   word    is    found 
only  here  in  classical  Latin  and 
was     probably     a    colloquialism. 
These  references  to  difficulties  on 
the  way  are  not  to  be  taken  liter- 
ally ;  they  suit  the  general  tone  of 
humorous  exaggeration. 

1 1 .  victor  propositi :  this  phrase 
also  is  intentionally  over-serious, 
almost  epic. 

12-13.  sic  positum :  'just  as  I 
am  arranging  it  now ' ;  as  if  Horace 
were  actually  showing  Vinnius  how 
to  hold  it  and  how  to  carry  it 
properly.  —  ne  .  .  .  portes:  in 
form  a  clause  of  purpose,  but  in 
sense  a  continuation  of  the  com- 
mand from  uteris,  servabis,  '  don't 
carry  my  package  under  your 
arm,  like  a  farmer  carrying  a 
lamb.' 


84 


EPISTVLAE 


Cl»  13.  19 


ut  vinosa  glomus  furtivae  Pyrrhia  lanae, 
15      ut  cum  pileolo  soleas  conviva  tribulis. 
Ne  vulgo  narres  te  sudavisse  ferendo 
carmina,  quae  possint  oculos  auresque  morari 
Caesaris.     Oratus  multa  prece,  nitere  porro; 
vade,  vale ;  cave  ne  titubes  mandataque  frangas. 


14.  glomus :     ace.    plur. ;     the 
word  is  a  technical  term,  of  wool 
gathered  into  a  ball  for  spinning. 
—  Pyrrhia :  the  form  of  the  name 
is  quite  uncertain.     The  Scholiast 
says  that  this  is  an  allusion  to  a 
scene  in  a  play  of  Titinius. 

15.  conviva  tribulis :    a  poorer 
member   of  a   '  tribe,'    invited   to 
dinner  for  political   purposes   by 
a   richer  fellow-tribesman,   would 
have  no  slave  to  carry  his  cap  or 
to  take  his  sandals  when  he  re- 
clined on  the   couch.     He  would 
therefore    carry    them    under    his 
arm.  —  The  three  comparisons  are 
not  meant  to  describe  three  differ- 
ent ways  of  carrying  things  under 
the  arm,  but  merely  to  suggest  the 
awkwardness  which  Vinnius  is  to 
avoid. 

16-17.  'And  don't  brag  to 
everybody  about  your  important 
mission.'  The  important  word  in 
the  infin.  phrase  is  not  sudavisse, 


but  ferendo.      The   exaggeration 
of  sudavisse  is  like  that  in  vss.  4-5, 

10,    II. 

18.  oratus :  by  Horace,  in  this 
letter.  —  multa  prece :    the  whole 
Epistle  is  made  up  of  such  exhor- 
tations and  the  point  is  the  same 
as   that   of   saepe   diuqne,    vs.    i. 
'  You  have  heard  all  my  directions, 
now  go  on.' 

19.  titubes:     a    very    common 
word  in  Plautus,  in  giving  direc- 
tions for  the  carrying  out  of  a  plan ; 
M.G.  946,  Pseud.  764,  939.     The 
literal  meaning  is  here  distinctly 
in  mind,  with  a  reference  back  to 
vss.   8-9,  and  is  carried  on  into 
frangas.  —  mandata  :  not  the  vol- 
umes,   but    the    injunctions,    the 
multae  preces.     The   literal   and 
figurative  meanings  run  together ; 
'  don't   stumble   and   break    your 
load,1  '  don't  make  a  mistake  and 
forget  my  directions  to  you.' 


14 

The  date  of  this  Epistle  cannot  be  determined  nor  is  it  of  importance 
for  the  interpretation.  The  person  to  whom  it  is  supposed  to  be  written 
is  the  superintendent  of  Horace's  farm. 

'  Foreman  of  my  nice  little  farm,  we  seem  to  oe  disagreeing.  I  am 
detained  here  in  Rome,  longing  for  the  country ;  you  want  to  be  back 

85 


i,  14,  i]  HORATI 

in  Rome.  You  are  inconsistent  and  I  am  not,  but  the  real  difference  is 
in  our  tastes.  To  you  my  farm  seems  a  desert  and  a  place  of  hard 
labor,  and  you  long  for  pleasures,  while  1  have  dropped  all  that  kind 
of  thing  and  want  only  peace.  Each  wants  what  the  other  has.  But 
it  won't  do ;  the  shoemaker  will  have  to  stick  to  his  last,  according  to 
the  old  saying.1 

This  Epistle  is  in  complete  contrast  to  the  one  which  immediately 
precedes  it.  It  is  a  little  disquisition  on  the  inconsistencies  of  men,  as 
illustrated  by  the  steward's  discontent  with  the  life  which  he  had  once 
greatly  desired,  and  on  the  attractiveness  of  the  country,  which  seemed 
all  the  stronger  to  Horace  when  he  happened  to  be  detained  in  Rome 
beyond  his  usual  time.  These  themes  Horace  had  treated  before,  in 
Sat.  i,  i  and  Sat.  2,  6,  using  the  satire  form.  In  returning  to  them  at 
this  later  time,  under  the  impulse  of  his  longing  to  escape  from  the  city, 
he  used  the  epistolary  form  with  which  he  was  then  experimenting. 
The  vilici4s  is,  of  course,  a  mere  figurehead;  the  letter  was  not  actually 
sent  to  him  at  all ;  but  the  advantages  of  the  direct  form  of  address 
appear  in  the  individual  allusions  (vss.  2-3,  6-7,  14-15,  19-30),  which 
illustrate  the  general  doctrines  that  underlie  the  whole.  There  is, 
too,  a  certain  simplicity  and  directness  in  the  language,  though  there 
is,  of  course,  no  attempt  to  come  down  to  the  level  of  the  steward's 
comprehension. 

Vilice  silvarum  et  mihi  me  re.ddentis  agelli, 
quern  tu  fastidis  habitatum  quinque  focis  et 
quinque  bonos  solitum  Variam  dimittere  patres, 
certemus,  spinas  animone  ego  fortius  an  tu 

i.   silvarum:    Horace  mentions  tion  of  quinque.  —  Variam:    now 

the  woodlands  in  several  allusions  1'icimaro,     the     nearest      market 

to  his  farm  (Sat.  2,  6,  3  ;  Epist.  town. — patres :    'heads   of  fami- 

i,  16,  9)  and  evidently  regarded  lies.1     They  were  coloni,  who  held 

them  as  an  important  part  of  the  the  lands  on  lease  from   Horace 

estate.  —  mihi  me  reddentis :  '  that  and  were  independent  farmers  and 

restores  me  to  myself  ;  cf.  Epist.  citizens.     On  the  part  of  the  es- 

I,  18.  101,  te  tibi  reddat  amicnm.  tate    which    Horace   reserved   for 

2-3.  habitatum :    '  though    it  is  himself  and  of  which  the  -vilicus 

large  enough  to  furnish  homes  to  had  charge,  eight  slaves  (Sat.  2, 

five  families ' ;  there  is  a  little  half-  7,  1 18)  were  kept  at  work, 

humorous  boasting  in  the  repeti-  4-5.  certemus:  i.e.t '  I  challenge 

86 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  14, 


evellas  agro,  et  melior  sit  Horatius  an  res. 
Me  quamvis  Lamiae  pietas  et  cura  moratur, 
fratrem  maerentis,  rapto  de  fratre  dolentis 
insolabiliter,  tamen  istuc  mens  animusque 
fert  et  amat  spatiis  obstantia  rumpere  claustra. 
Rure  ego  viventem,  tu  dicis  in  urbe  beatum ; 
cui  placet  alterius,  sua  nimirum  est  odio  sors. 
VStultus  uterque  locum  immeritum  causatur  inique; 
in  culpa  est  animus,  qui  se  non  effugit  unquam. 
Tu  mediastinus  tacita  prece  rura  petebas, 


you  to  a  contest,  to  see  whether 
.  .  .  .' —  spinas:  for  weeds  in  gen- 
eral ;  softh'x(Sat.  i,  3,  37)  is  used 
both  of  faults  and  of  weeds.  —  res  : 
ft is  farm. 

6.  Lamiae:     subjective     gen.; 
'  Lamia's   affection   and    distress,' 
further  explained  by  the  next  line. 
[The  single  case  of  an  objective 
gen.,  deum  pietas,  in  a  fragment 
of  Naevius,  by  no  means  justifies 
the  taking  of  Lamiae  as  an  ob- 
jective genitive.] — moratur:   the 
subjv.  is   the   proper  mode   with 
quamvis,  but  the  confusion  with 
quamquam  had  already  gone  so 
far  that    Horace   uses   the   indie, 
more  often  than  the  subjunctive. 
—  Carm.  I,  26  is  addressed  to  L. 
Aelius  Lamia  and  he  is  referred 
to  in  Carm.  3,  17.     He  became 
consul  in   3    A.D.     Evidently   he 
was  one  of  Horace's  most  valued 
friends. 

7.  The  repetition  fratrem  .  .  . 
fratre  and  the  assonance  of  mae- 
rentis,  dolentis  give  the  line  a  pe- 


culiar effect.  Cicero  (ad  Att.  12, 
28,  2,  maerorem  minui,  dolorem 
nee  pot  HI)  distinguishes  between 
the  two  words,  but  the  distinction 
is  here  unimportant ;  mourning, 
grieving. 

8.  istuc:    <to  the   place  where 
you  are,'  to  the  country. 

9.  amat :  longs ;  so,  with  infin., 
Carm.  3,  9,  24.  —  The  figure  in 
the  rest  of  the  line  is  taken  from 
chariot  racing ;    claustra   are    the 
bars  which  kept  the  horses  within 
the  carceres   until    the   race   was 
started  and  which  may  therefore 
be  said  obstare  spatiis,  to  '  stand 
in  the  way  of  the  race  course.1 

ii.  alterius:  sc.  sors.  The 
thought  is  that  with  which  Sat. 
i,  i  opens. 

12-13.  Cf.  Epist.  i,  n,esp.  vss. 
25-27.  —  immeritum  :  i.e.,  '  which 
is  not  responsible,'  as  in  Sat.  2,  3, 
7  f.  immeritus  .  .  .  paries.  The 
same  thought  is  expressed  also  in 
inique. 

14.  tu :  this  takes  up  the  con- 


'4, 


HORATI 


15      nunc  urbem  et  ludos  et  balnea  vilicus  optas; 
me  constare  mihi  scis  et  discedere  tristem, 
quandocumque  trahunt  invisa  negotia  Romam. 
Non  eadem  miramur ;  eo  disconvenit  inter 
meque  et  te.     Nam  quae  deserta  et  inhospita  tesqua 

20      credis,  amoena  vocat  mecum  qui  sentit,  et  odit 

quae  tu  pulchra  putas.     Fornix  tibi  et  uncta  popina 
incutiunt  urbis  desiderium,  video,  et  quod 
angulus  iste  feret  piper  et  tus  ocius  uva, 
nee  vicina  subest  vinum  praebere  taberna 

25      quae  possit  tibi,  nee  meretrix  tibicina,  cuius 

ad  strepitum  salias  terrae  gravis.     Et  tamen  urgues 

,/^  iampridem  non  tacta  ligonibus  arva,  bovemque 
disiunctum  curas  et  strictis  frondibus  exples ; 


trast  begun  in  vs.  6  and  expressed 
in  vs.  10.  —  mediastinus  :  a  com- 
mon drudge.  —  tacita :  />.,  •  you 
regarded  it  as  so  great  a  piece  of 
good  fortune  that  you  did  not  dare 
to  ask  for  it.' 

15.  nunc:   'but  now  that  you 
have  it.1  —  vilicus :  a  head  servant, 
in  contrast  to  mediastinus. 

1 6.  me :    '  but  I  am  consistent 
in  my  wishes.' 

18.  eo  disconvenit :  <  the  differ- 
ence  in   our  tastes   explains    the 
fact  that  you  are  inconsistent  and 
I  am  consistent.' 

19.  tesqua  :  wilds ;  said  by  the 
Scholiast  to  be  a  Sabine  word. 

21.  fornix  :  a  brothel.  —  uncta  : 
cf.  immundis  popinis,  Sat.  2,  4, 
62.  The  common  cook  shops 
would  be  ill-kept  and  greasy. 

23.   angulus  iste  :  '  that  hole,  as 


you  call  it.'  —  piper  et  tus :  i.e., 
'  the  farm  cannot  be  made  to  pro- 
duce good  wine \nva)  ;  you  might 
as  well  expect  to  raise  tropical 
plants  there.'  This  and  the  fol- 
lowing lines  express  the  steward's 
disgust  with  his  occupation  and 
circumstances. 

25.  meretrix  tibicina:   like  the 
Copa  Syrisca  in  Vergil's  poem. 

26.  tamen:    'in   spite   of  your 
having  no  pleasures,  as  you  say.' 
—  urgues :    to   express   the   stew- 
ard's sense  of  the  difficulty  of  his 
labors. 

27.  non    tacta :     and    therefore 
harder  to  bring  under  cultivation. 

28.  disiunctum :    the   oxen   are 
loosed  from  the   plow  and   their 
labor  is  over,  but  the  steward  must 
still  take  care  of  them  and  give 
them  their  fodder  (frondibus). 


88 


EPISTVLAE 


4f 


addit  opus  pigro  rivus,  si  decidit  imber, 
30      multa  mole  docendus  aprico  parcere  prato. 

Nunc  age,  quid  nostrum  concentum  dividat,  audi. 
Quern  tenues  decuere  togae  nitidique  capilli, 
quern  scis  immunem  Cinarae  placuisse  rapaci, 
quern  bibulum  liquidi  media  de  luce  Falerni, 
35      cena  brevis  iuvat  et  prope  rivum  somnus  in  herba. 
Nee  lusisse  pudet,  sed  non  inciclere  ludum. 
Non  istic  obliquo  oculo  mea  commoda  quisquam 
limat,  non  odio  obscuro  morsuque  venenat ; 
rident  vicini  glebas  et  saxa  moventem. 
4o      Cum  servis  urbana  diaria  rodere  mavis, 


29.  addit :  and  there  is  even 
more  to  do,  like  directing  the  flow 
of  the  water  in  a  heavy  rain.  — 
pigro :  this  is  added  by  Horace. 

31.  quid  .  .  .  dividat:  i.e.,  <  what 
makes  my  view  of  country  life  so 
entirely  different   from   yours.'  — 
audi :  let  me  tell  you,  as  often ; 
Sat.  i,  I,  14. 

32.  tenues:  fine,  'of  fine  mate- 
rial ' ;    the  opposite    was    crassa, 
Sat.  I,  3,  15. 

33.  immunem:        'though       I 
brought    no    gift'    (Wilkins). — 
Cinarae:    cf.   Epist.  i,  7,  28  and 
note.     The  adj.  rapaci  is  general, 
of  women  of  her  class,  not  indi- 
vidual. 

34.  media  de  luce  :  to  drink  be- 
fore nightfall  is  often  referred  to 
as  typical  of  a  rather  fast  life,  e.g., 
Sat.  i,  4,  51  f.,  or  at  least  a  life 
of  pleasure,  Carm.  2,  7,  6. 

36.  nee  lusisse  pudet :  all  this 
was,  by  Roman  standards,  suitable 


enough  for  a  young  man.  —  in- 
cidere  :  cut  short,  <•  bring  to  an  end 
at  the  proper  time.' 

37.  istic  :  where  you  are,  in  the 
country;  cf.    istuc,  vs.    8. — obli- 
quo :  look  askance  with  envy. 

38.  limat :    literally  files,    cuts 
away,  i.e.,  lessens ;  but  the  word 
is  more  frequently  used  of  polish- 
ing and  is  here  chosen  for  the  pun 
upon   limis   oculis,    which   is   the 
same  as  obliquo  oculo.  — venenat : 
envy  and  hatred  are  like  the  bite 
of  a  poisonous   serpent.     Horace 
frequently  alludes  to  the  fact  that 
he  was  envied  and  criticized,  es- 
pecially  for    his    friendship   with 
Maecenas. 

39.  rident :  '  instead  of  envying 
me,  my  neighbors  merely  smile  in 
a  good-natured  way,  as   they  see 
me  trying  to  work  with  my  own 
hands  about  my  farm.' 

•  40-44.   A  summary  of  the  whole ; 
;  every  man  wants  what  he  has  not 


89 


1,  14,  40  HORATI 

horum  tu  in  numerum  voto  ruis  ;  invidet  usum 
lignorum  et  pecoris  tibi  calo  argutus  et  horti. 
Optat  ephippia  bos,  piger  optat  arare  caballus. 
Quam  scit  uterque  libens  censebo  exerceat  artem. 

—  a  great  mistake,  in  my  opinion.'  ing,  have  an  easy  life.  —  Vs.  44  is 

—  cum  servis:  -like  my  slaves  in  proverbial  ;     Cicero    expresses    it 
the   city,'  urbana  going  in  sense  (7/^r.  i,  18,  41)    in  slightly  dif- 
with  servis.  —  diaria  :  rations,  in-  ferent  form;  'bone  enim  illo  pro- 
stead  of  the  abundant  food  of  the  verbio  (Jraeco   praecipitur;  quam 
farm.  —  calo :  my  groom,  who  had  quisque  norit  artem,  in  hac  se  ex- 
occasionally  gone    out   with    his  erceat.'  —  censebo :     inserted     in 
master  to  the  farm;  cf.  Sat.  I,  6,  parataxis  with  exerceat.     The  fu- 
103. — argutus:  i.e.,1  using  all  his  ture   does    not    really   belong   to 
arguments     to    persuade    me.1 —  censebo  (for  cettseo),  but  is  taken 
piger :  the  riding-horse  thinks  that  over  from  exerceat ;  cf.  Plaut.  M.G. 
the  oxen,  moving  slowly  in  plow-  395,  1209;  Cure,  493. 

15 

Of  the  date  of  this  Epistle  it  can  only  be  said  that  it  was  written 
after  23,  when  Antonius  Musa  introduced  the  cold-water  cure,  and  per- 
haps in  fulfilment  of  the  intention  expressed  in  Epist.  i,  7,  n,  to  spend 
a  winter  on  the  southern  coast.  The  person  addressed  is  a  Numonius 
Vala,  of  whom,  individually,  nothing  is  known  except  what  is  implied 
in  the  letter.  But  there  are  references  in  inscriptions  and  on  coins  to 
Numonii,  who  were  of  a  somewhat  distinguished  family  in  Lucania. 

;  Tell  me  all  about  your  part  of  the  country,  Vala  (for  my  doctor  has 
ordered  me  to  give  up  Baiae  and  take  to  the  cold-water  business ;  I 
don't  like  it,  but  I  suppose  I  must  do  as  he  says)  ;  how  about  the 
bread?  and  the  water  ?  (I'll  attend  to  the  wine  myself.)  And  what 
can  I  get  in  the  way  of  game  and  sea  food  ?  Oh,  yes,  I  haven't  for- 
gotten my  own  sermons.  But  you  know  the  story  of  Maenius,  how  he 
used  to  preach  against  prodigals,  but,  when  he  had  a  chance,  used  to 
return  with  gusto  to  his  prodigal  life  again.  So  I  preach  simplicity 
when  my  bank  account  is  low,  but  I  also  know  a  good  dinner  when  I 
see  it.' 

A  genuine  letter,  asking  for  information  and  expecting  an  answer. 
But  the  dry  questions  are  interrupted  by  humorous  parentheses  which 
explain  the  reason  for  the  letter  and  set  forth  the  cheerful  frame  of  mind 

90 


EPISTVLAE 


of  the  writer.  And  the  letter  is  turned  into  a  work  of  art,  worthy  of 
preservation,'  by  the  story  of  Maenius  and  the  humorous  application 
of  it  to  Horace  himself. 

Quae  sit  hiems  Veliae,  quod  caelum,  Vala,  Salerni, 
quorum  hominum  regio  et  qualis  via,  (nam  mihi  Baias 
Musa  supervacuas  Antonius,  et  tamen  illis 
me  facit  invisum,  gelida  cum  perluor  unda 
5       per  medium  frigus.     Sane  murteta  relinqui, 
dictaque  cessantem  nervis  elidcrc  morbum 


1.  quae  sit:  the  letter,  down  to 
vs.  25,  consists  of  a  series  of  indi- 
rect questions  interrupted  by  two 
long  parentheses  (2-1 3  and  16-21) 
with  vs.  25  as  the  leading  clause. 
—  hiems :  this  has  reference  to  the 
purpose  expressed  in  Epist.  I,  7, 
10- 1 1 .  —  caelum :     climate',     not 
really  different  from  hiems,  which 
refers   to   the    winter    climate.  — 
Veliae :  a  small  town  on  the  Lu- 
canian  coast,  some  sixty  miles  be- 
low   Naples.  —  Salerni :    on    the 
coast  of  Campania,  about   fifteen 
miles  from  Naples.     The  family  of 
Vala  came  from  this  region. 

2.  quorum  hominum  :    the  two 
genitives  make  a  kind  of  compound 
interrogative  adj.  corresponding  to 
qnalis ;  '  a  what-sort-of-people  dis- 
trict.' —  qualis :  there  was  no  good 
Roman  road  going  down  to  Velia, 
and  off  the  regular  routes  the  char- 
acter of  the  roads  was  of  impor- 
tance. 

3.  Musa  .  .  .  Antonius:  nomen 
and  cognomen  are  in  reversed  or- 
der, as   in    Epist.    i,  8,   i.     This 
famous  physician  had  recently  in- 


troduced the  cold-water  cure,  and 
Horace,  either  following  the  fash- 
ion or  under  the  orders  of  the 
doctor,  was  giving  up  his  habit  of 
going  to  Baiae  for  the  warm  baths. 
—  supervacuas :  superfluous,  use- 
less. —  et  tamen :  '  and  for  that 
matter,1  '  and  what  is  more ' ;  for 
this  sense  of  et  tamen  cf.  Cic.  Cat. 
Mai.  6,  1 6,  'notum  enim  vobis 
carmen  est ;  et  tamen  ipsius  Appi 
exstat  oratio';  and  at  the  end  of 
the  same  section,  'ex  quo  intel- 
legitur  Pyrrhi  bello  grandem  sane 
fuisse ;  et  tamen  sic  a  patribus  ac- 
cepimus.'  [This  usage  is  not  in- 
frequent, but  is  often  emended  or 
explained  away  by  all  sorts  of 
ellipses.  There  is  a  fairly  good 
note  on  it  in  Munro's  Lucret.  5, 
1177.] 

5.  sane :  of  course,  naturally ; 
with  the  whole  sentence,  but  esp. 
with  vicus  gemit.  —  murteta :  these 
myrtle  groves  on  the  slope  above 
Baiae  are  oft"n  mentioned. 

6.  cessantem :  lingering,  there- 
fore chronic.  —  nervis :  muscles,  as 
always  in   classical  Latin.      The 


5.  7] 


HORATI 


10 


sulfura  contemn!  vicus  gemit  invidus  aegris, 
qui  caput  et  stomachum  supponerc  fontibus  audent 
Clusinis  Gabiosque  petunt  et  frigida  rura. 
Mutandus  locus  est,  et  deversoria  nota 
praeteragendus   equus:       '  Quo    tendis  ?      Non    mihi 

Cumas 

est  iter  aut  Baias,'  laeva  stomaehosus  habena 
dicet  eques ;  sed  equis  f renato  est  auris  in  ore) ; 
maior  utrum  populum  frumenti  copia  pascat, 
collectosne  bibant  imbres  puteosne  perennes 


disease  was  probably  rheumatic.  — 
elidere  :  a  technical  term  of  medi- 
cine ;  drive  out  would  be  the  mod- 
ern equivalent. 

7.  invidus :  corresponds  actively 
to  the  passive  tnvisum,  vs.  4. 

8.  supponere :  the  treatment  was 
given  in  part  by  shower  baths.  — 
audent :  venture  to  take  the  new- 
fashioned  treatment. 

9.  Clusinis :   there  is  no  other 
mention  of  baths  at  Clusium,  but 
in  the  hill  country  springs  would 
be  found  anywhere.     The  baths  of 
Gabii,  near  Rome,  are  mentioned 
by  Juvenal.  —  frigida   rura  :    the 
country   places   of  Romans    were 
almost   all   up  in  the  mountains, 
where  the  air  would  be  cooler  than 
in  the  city. 

10.  mutandus :  this  is  the  con- 
clusion of  the  whole  matter;  '  I've 
got  to  take  cold  baths  all  winter ; 
I've  got  to  abandon   Baiae   and 
duck  my  head  into  a  cold  spring. 
I  don't  like  it,  but  it's  the  doctor's 
orders.'  There  is  a  humorous  skep- 


ticism in  regard  to  the  new  cure 
and  a  humorous  acceptance  of  the 
situation  in  the  whole  passage,  vss. 
2-13.  —  deversoria  nota:  the  inns 
where  he  had  lived  before  at  Cu- 
mae  and  Baiae,  known  to  his  horse 
as  well  as  to  himself. 

12.  laeva :  the  road  down  to  Cu- 
mae  and  the  coast  towns  branched 
off  to  the  right,  and  the  horse  was 
trying  to  take  this  familiar  turn.  — 
habena  :    abl .    with   stomaehosus ; 
'expressing  his  anger  by  pulling 
the  left-hand  rein.' 

13.  sed :  i.e.,  '  but  he  might  as 
well  have  spared  his   words   and 
simply  pulled  the  rein,  for  a  bridled 
horse  hears  with  his  mouth.' 

14.  The  indirect  questions  go 
on  after  the  parenthetic  explana- 
tion   of    the    reason     for    asking 
them.  —  frumenti  copia  :  the  sup- 
ply  of  grain  stands   for  all   the 
ordinary   kinds   of  food,  perhaps 
with  special  reference  to  the  bread 
(cf.  Sat.  1,5,  89-90). 

15.  collectos    .    .    .  imbres :  in 


92 


EPISTVLAE 


[i-  15,26 


20 


iugis  aquae,  (nam  vina  nihil  moror  illius  orae. 
Rure  meo  possum  quidvis  perferre  patique ; 
ad  mare  cum  veni,  generosum  et  lene  require, 
quod  curas  abigat,  quod  cum  spe  divite  manet 
in  venas  animumque  meum,  quod  verba  ministret, 
quod  me  Lucanae  iuvenem  commendet  amicae) ; 
tractus  uter  plures  lepores,  uter  educet  apros ; 
utra  magis  pisces  et  echinos  aequora  celent 
pinguis  ut  inde  domum  possim  Phaeaxque  reverti, 
scribere  te  nobis,  tibi  nos  adcredere  par  est. 
Maenius,  ut  rebus  maternis  atque  paternis 


some  parts  of  southern  Italy  the 
supply  of  water  was  scanty  (Sat. 
I,  5,  88,  91,  97)  and  it  was  neces- 
sary to  store  rain  water  in  cisterns. 
—  perennes:  'good  all  the  year 
round,'  i.  <?.,  which  do  not  dry  up 
in  summer. 

1 6.  iugis  :  running,  not  from  a 
stagnant  pool ;  cf.  Sat.  2, 6, 2,  iugis 
aquae  fans.  This  is  not  tautolog- 
ical with  p'erennis;  l  springs  from 
which  there  is  running  water  at  all 
seasons.' 

i 6-21.  'About  the  wine  I  make 
no  inquiries,  for  I  will  bring  some 
with  me.'  —  nihil  moror  :  '  I  care 
nothing';  cf.  Sat.  I,  4,  13.  —  rure 
meo :  in  contrast  to  ad  mare  cum 
veni;  in  his  own  home,  contented 
and  satisfied,  he  does  not  care 
what  he  has  to  eat  or  drink.  — 
perferre  patique:  with  intentional 
exaggeration  of  phrase.  —  gene- 
rosum :  not  as  '  generous '  is  used 
in  English,  but  of  good  stock,  i.e., 
from  a  good  and  well-known 


vineyard.  —  lene  :  smooth.  —  The 
following  lines  are  the  conven- 
tional praises  of  wine,  with  slight 
variations.  Compare  the  corre- 
sponding lines  in  Eptst.  1,5, 16-20, 
with  notes  there.  —  manet:  from 
mano,  not  from  maneo. 

22.  The  indirect  questions  are 
resumed,     becoming     now     more 
specific.  —  lepores  :    hares  appear 
in   both   the    gastronomic  satires 
(2,  4,  44 ;  2,  8,  89).  —  apros :  Lu- 
canian  boars  are  often  mentioned. 

23.  echinos :  sea  rirchins ;   they 
were  eaten    with   very  elaborate 
sauces    and    were    considered    a 
great  delicacy  (Sat.  2,  4,  33). 

24.  Phaeax  :  cf.  E.pist.  1,2,28  ff. 
and  note. 

25.  adcredere  :  because  Vala  was 
at  home  in  this  region. 

26.  The     story    is    introduced 
with  an  abruptness  that  is  quite  in 
Horace's     manner,     without    any 
suggestion  of  the  connection  with 
the    preceding     thought.     To    a 


'5.  27J 


HO  R  ATI 


fortiter  absumptis  urbanus  cocpit  haberi 
scurra,  vagus  non  qui  certum  praesepe  teneret, 
impransus  non  qui  civem  dignosceret  hoste, 
30      quaelibet  in  quern  vis  opprobria  fingere  saevus, 
pernicies  et  tempestas  barathrumque  macelli, 
quicquid  quaesierat,  ventri  donabat  avaro. 
Hie  ubi  nequitiae  fautoribus  et  timidis  nil 


Roman  reader,  however,  the  name 
of  Maenius,  a  Lucilian  character 
wno  had  become  a  type  of  the 
reckless  and  witty  spendthrift, 
would  at  once  suggest  the  general 
character  of  the  anecdote  and  the 
connection  with  vs.  24  —  '  You 
smile  at  my  anxiety  about  my  food 
and  my  desire  to  get  fat  on  good 
living.  Yes.  I  confess  it,  Maenius 
is  my  model,  and  I'll  tell  you  a 
story  about  him.'  —  maternis,  pa- 
ternis :  he  had  gone  through  two 
fortunes. 

27.  fortiter :  '  like  a  young  man 
of  spirit '  ;  with  absumptis. 

27-28.  urbanus  .  .  .  scurra:  'a 
man  about  town.'  The  word 
scurra,  which  is  defined  by  Plautus 
(itrbani  adsidni  rives,  quos  scurras 
vacant,  Trin.  202),  had  always  a 
suggestion  of  disparagement,  but 
in  combination  with  urbanus, 
which  inclines  toward  a  good 
sense,  it  is  so  nearly  neutral  as  to 
need  the  definition  of  the  two 
adjectives  and  the  relative  clauses. 
— vagus :  not  a  regular  comrictor 
at  any  house,  but  picking  up  an 
invitation  where  he  could.  — 
praesepe :  crib,  manger,  used  hu- 


morously. —  The  order  of  words 
must  be  noticed;  'a  roamer,  not 
the  kind  that  has  a  regular  crib.' 
[The  order  is  too  marked  in  this 
vs.  and  in  29  to  make  it  possible 
to  include  vagus  and  impransus 
in  the  relative  clauses,  as  if  it  had 
been  qui  vagus  non  .  .  ,  teneret.  J 

29.  civem  .  .  .  hoste  :    friend 
from  foe',    cf.    Plaut.    Trin.   102. 
Itostisne    an  civis   comedis  parvi 
pendere.    The  older  sense  ( -=pere- 
gr inns')  is  quite  uncalled  for  here. 

30.  opprobria  fingere  :  this  char- 
acteristic of  the  scurra,  paying  for 
his  dinner  by  insulting  witticisms, 
is  well  described  by  Horace,  Sat. 
I,  4,  81-85. 

31.  A  Plautine  line;   cf.  Capt. 
911,   clades    calamitasque    intein- 
peries  modo   in   nostram  advenit 
domum,  of  a  hungry  parasite,  and 
Cure.    121    b,    age    effunde    hoc 
\vinum~\  cito  in  barathrum.    The 
figure  is  '  he  came  upon  the  mar- 
ket house   like    ruin,  like  a  hurri- 
cane, like  an  abyss.' 

33.  nequitiae:  ivorthlessness, 
with  special  reference  to  a  spend- 
thrift's follies:  joined  with  nugis 
and  pravonim  amore^  Sat.  2,  3 


EPISTVLAE 


fi,  15. 


ant  paullum  abstulerat,  patinas  cenabat  oinasi 
35      vilis  et  agninae,  tribus  ursis  quod  satis  esset ; 
scilicet  ut  ventres  lamna  candente  nepotum 
diceret  urendos  correctus  Bestius.     Idem 
quidquid  erat  nactus  praedae  maioris,  ubi  omne 
verterat  in  fumum  et  cinerem,  '  Non  hercule  miror,' 
40      aiebat,  '  si  qui  comedunt  bona,  cum  sit  obeso 
nil  melius  turdo,  nil  vulva  pulchrius  ampla.' 


244.  —  fautoribus  :  i.e.,  he  had  for 
a  time  found  persons  to  applaud  his 
follies,  but  thej'  had  become  afraid 
(timidis)  of  his  savage  wit. 

34.  abstulerat:  i.e.,  had  reached 
the  point  where  no  one  would  give 
him  a  dinner.  —  patinas :  platters, 
he  still  kept  his  appetite,  though 
he  had  to  eat  coarse  food.  —  omasi : 
tripe ;  spoken  of  with  contempt  in 
Sat.  2,  5,  40. 

35.  vilis :    with    agninae.     But 
it  is  odd  to  modern  taste  that  lamb 
should  be  classed  with   tripe   as 
coarse  and  cheap  food. 

36-37.  scilicet  ut :  'in  order,  you 
know,  that  he  might  be  able  to 
say  .  .  .' ;  an  ironical  purpose ; 
cf.  F.pist.  I,  9,  3,  and  note. — 
lamna  :  slaves  were  branded  with 
hot  plates  {laminae}  on  the  mem- 
ber that  had  been  most  guilty,  as 
on  the  hand  for  stealing.  Mae- 
nius,  being  unable  to  buy  dainty 
and  expensive  food,  filled  himself 
with  coarse  food  and  then  dis- 
coursed with  severity  on  the  pun- 
ishments that  ought  to  be  inflicted 
on  people  who  wasted  their  money 
(nepotum)  on  high  living.  —  cor- 


rectus Bestius  :  '  like  Bestius  after 
his  reformation,1  or  perhaps  're- 
formed into  a  regular  Bestius.' 
For  correctus,  cf.  Sat,  2,  3,  254, 
mutatus  Polemon.  As  Bestius  is 
wholly  unknown,  it  is  impossible  to 
understand  the  allusion  precisely ; 
he  may  have  been  a  reformed 
prodigal  who  denounced  his 
former  vices,  or  a  type  of  the 
severe  censor  of  others'  vices. 

38.  '  And  yet  this  same  man,  if 
he  had  the  chance,  relapsed  into 
his  prodigal  ways.1  —  praedae  ma- 
ioris :    '  whenever  he  had  made  a 
good  haul,1  i.e.,  had  succeeded  in 
getting  something  good  out  of  one 
of  \\\sfautores. 

39.  fumum  et  cinerem :  prover- 
bial, esp.  of  sacking  and  destroying 
a  captured  town.  —  hercule:  as  an 
interjection  more  commonly  in  the 
form  hercle. 

40.  comedunt  bona:  cf.  Catull. 
29,  22,  devorare  patrimonia  ;  the 
literal  sense  is,  of  course,  also  in 
mind. 

41.  vulva:    the    matrix   of  the 
sow,-  which   was    regarded    as    a 
delicacy. 


95 


1,  is,  42]  HORATI 

Nimirum  hie  ego  sum  ;  nam  tuta  et  parvula  laudo, 
cum  res  deficiunt,  satis  inter  vilia  fortis ; 
verum  ubi  quid  melius  contingit  et  unctius,  idem 
45     vos  sapere  et  solos  aio  bene  vivere,  quorum 
conspicitur  nitidis  fundata  pecunia  villis. 

42-46.  The  application  of  tne  — nitidis:  splendid, gleaming, like 
story  to  Horace  himself  is  made  in  villa  candens,  Epod.  i,  29,  with 
phrases  which  recall  the  preceding  reference  to  the  appearance  of  the 
lines  without  precisely  repeating  white  mass  of  the  house  when  seen 
them,  tuta  et  parvula  laudo  =  vss.  from  a  distance  against  the  back- 
36,  37;  cum  res  deficiunt  =  vss.  ground  of  trees.  —  The  underlying 
33-34 ;  ubi  quid  .  .  .  contingit  meaning  of  vss.  45-46  is,  '  then  I 
=  quidquid  erat  nactus,  vs.  38 ;  turn  Epicurean,  too,  and  enjoy 
idem  =  idem,  vs.  37 ;  and  the  rest  your  fine  country  houses  and  your 
is  Horace's  way  of  expressing  the  good  dinners,  just  as  if  I  had  never 
thought  of  vss.  39-41.  —  vos:  preached  the  Simple  Life.'  The 
Vala  was  among  the  wealthy  peo-  story  thus  turns  back  to  its  start- 
pie  of  the  region. — conspicitur  ing-point,  the  inquiry  in  vss.  22- 
. . .  fundata :  to  be  taken  together ;  23  about  game  and  sea  food. 
'is  plainly  seen  to  be  solidly  based.' 

16 

The  year  in  which  this  Epistle  was  written  cannot  be  determined, 
and  the  character  of  the  letter  is  such  that  the  precise  date  is  not  im- 
portant. It  may  perhaps  be  inferred  from  vs.  16  that  it  was  written  in 
the  late  summer  or  the  early  autumn.  The  Quinctius  to  whom  the  letter 
is  addressed  is  a  man  of  position  in  public  life  (vss.  17-18),  of  some 
experience  (vs.  25),  and  perhaps  in  office  at  this  time  (vs.  34).  He 
may  be  the  Quinctius  Hirpinus  of  Carm.  2,  n. 

'  My  farm,  if  you  care  to  know  about  it,  my  dear  Quinctius,  is  not  so 
much  a  source  of  revenue  to  me,  as  a  source  of  pleasure  and  health. 
Mountains,  woods,  streams,  and  a  cool  spring  make  it  a  perfect  retreat 
from  the  heats  of  the  city. 

'As  for  you,  you  are  in  the  midst  of  the  active  struggle  of  life,  where 
reputation  seems  more  important  than  character.  But  we  must  not  be 
misled  by  popular  applause,  for  it  is  often  insincere  and  always  fickle. 
Reputation  may  be  taken  away;  character  is  our  own.  But  it  must  be 
true  virtue,  not  the  fear  of  consequences,  that  keeps  us  from  doing 

06 


EPISTVLAE  [i,  1 6,  4 

wrong.  We  must  not  be  the  slaves  of  our  desires,  but  must  stand 
independent  and  free  from  fear.  Death  itself,  the  ultimate  penalty, 
comes  alike  to  all.' 

This  Epistle  belongs  to  the  more  impersonal  class  of  the  letters,  like 
i,  6  and  i,  10.  There  is  some  degree  of  personality  in  the  first  part, 
vss.  1-16;  Horace  cannot  write  impersonally  of  his  Sabine  farm.  And 
vss.  17-18  have  undoubtedly  some  special  reference  to  the  circumstances 
of  Quinctius.  But  the  latter  part  of  the  Epistle  is  general,  a  sort  of 
restatement,  in  Horace's  words  and  manner,  of  the  second  Stoic  Para- 
dox. This  is  quoted  by  Cicero  (Farad.  2)  :  on  avrapKr/s  17  dper?)  Trpos 
evSai/xovtav,  in  quo  sit  virtus,  ei  nihil  deesse  ad  beate  vivendum,  and  is 
discussed  and  illustrated  by  him  somewhat  as  it  is  here  treated  by  Horace, 
with  allusions  to  popular  favor,  to  the  tyranny  of  the  passions,  and  to 
death  as  the  ultima  linea.  In  the  style,  also,  as  well  as  in  the  sub- 
stance, there  is  an  adoption  of  Stoic  teaching  by  means  of  short  sen- 
tences and  lively  bits  of  dialogue.  No  careful  reader  of  the  Satires 
will  be  surprised  to  find  that  Horace,  in  his  later  study  of  philosophy, 
sometimes  accepts  the  Stoic  doctrines  ;  even  in  the  earlier  writings  it 
is  possible  to  see,  underneath  the  flippancy  with  which  he  meets  the 
formalism  of  the  Stoics,  a  considerable  measure  of  sympathy  with  the 
essence  of  their  teaching. 

Ne  perconteris,  fundus  meus,  optime  Quincti, 
arvo  pascat  erum  an  bacis  opulentet  olivae, 
pomisne  an  pratis  an  amicta  vitibus  ulmo  ; 
scribetur  tibi  forma  loquaciter  et  situs  agri. 

i.  ne  perconteris :  cf.  Epist.  i,  verbs  are  used  merely  for  variety. 
I,  13,  ac  ne  forte  roges.  —  The  — The  forms  of  cultivation  men- 
questions  which  Quinctius  might  tioned  were  among  those  gener- 
have  asked  relate  entirely  to  the  ally  used  in  Italy :  arvo,  land 
farm  as  a  source  of  income,  while  plowed  for  grain  ;  olives  and 
the  answering  description,  vss.  5-  fruit  for  sale  in  the  city ;  pratis, 
16.  is  concerned  only  with  the  meadows  for  pasturing  cattle; 
estate  as  a  pleasant  place  to  live  in  vitibns,  vines  trained  on  elm  trees 
during  the  summer.  for  the  making  of  wine.  The  four 

2-3.   pascat,    opulentet:    feeds  books   of  Vergil's   Georgics  deal 

with  grain,  enriches  by  the  sale  of  with  grain,  vineyards,  cattle,  and 

olives  and  fruit ;  but  the  distinc-  bees, 

tion  is  unimportant  and   the  two  4.  loquaciter:  at  full  length,  with 

HOR.  EP.  —  7  97 


I,  16,  <;] 


HORATI 


10 


•^ 

Continui  montes,  ni  dissocientur  opaca 
valle,  sed  ut  veniens  dextrum  latus  adspiciat  sol, 
laevum  discedens  curru  fugiente  vaporet ; 
temperiem  laudes.     Quid,  si  rubicunda  benigni 
corna  vepres  et  pruna  ferant  ?  si  quercus  et  ilex 
multa  fruge  pecus,  multa  dominum  iuvet  umbra? 
dicas  adductum  propius  frondere  Tarentum. 
Fons  etiam  rivo  dare  nomen  idoneus,  ut  nee 


a  jocose  admission  of  his  pleasure 
in  talking  about  his  farm. 

5.  continui  montes :  sc.  snnt.  — 
ni :  introducing  an  exception ; 
*  mountains  in  an  unbroken  stretch, 
except  where  they  are  separated  ' ; 
'the  continuity  would  be  unbroken, 
if  it  were  not.  .  .  .' 

6-7.  sed  ut:  limiting  opaca', 
'  shaded,  but  lying  so  that  the 
sun.  .  . .' — veniens  dextrum:  the 
valley  runs  north  and  south,  and 
in  describing  the  scene  Horace 
thinks  of  himself  as  facing  the 
south  or  southeast. — vaporet: 
warms,  merely  a  variation  on  ad- 
spiciat.—  In  connection  with  this 
description  one  should  read  Carm. 
i,  17,  and  the  first  part  of  Sat.  2, 
6,  in  order  to  see  how  deeply 
Horace  loved  the  scene.  The 
description,  however,  does  not 
make  it  possible  to  determine 
with  certainty  the  location  of  the 
villa. 

8-10.  temperiem  laudes :  this  is 
added  as  a  consequence  of  the 
mingling  of  shade  and  sunlight.  — 
quid,  si :  this  form  of  question  is 
one  to  which  the  answer  is  thought 


to  be  obvious.  No  verb  needs  to 
be  supplied,  but  if  one  were  to  be 
added  in  this  case,  it  would  be 
dicas,  taken  from  the  answer  to 
the  question.  —  rubicunda :  he  is 
thinking  of  the  looks  of  the  red 
berries,  rather  than  of  their  use  for 
food,  while  pruna,  wild  plums, 
are  for  eating.  —  fruge :  i.e.,  acorns 
for  the  swine. 

n.  Such  a  line  as  this  can  be 
better  paraphrased  than  translated; 
'  you  would  say  that  Tarentum 
had  been  brought  hither  and  that 
you  were  looking  at  its  foliage.' 
The  point  of  the  line  ism  frondere; 
the  foliage  of  green  Tarentum  was 
famous. 

12.  fons:  it  is  often  taken  for 
granted  that  this  is  i\\&fons  Ban- 
dusiae  of  Carm.  3,  13,  but  in  fact 
the  location  of  that  spring  is  quite 
unknown.  —  rivo:  the  Digentia, 
which  flowed  down  the  valley  to 
join  the  Anio. — idoneus:  i.e.,  so 
large  and  full  that  the  river  might 
well  take  its  name  from  the  spring 
which  is  its  source.  —  ut:  the 
clause  of  result  containing  the 
comparative  is  equivalent  to  'so 


98 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  16,  20 


frigidior  Thracam  nee  purior  ambiat  Hebrus, 

infirmo  capiti  fiuit  utilis,  utilis  alvo. 
15      Hae  latebrae  dulces,  etiam,  si  credis,  amoenae, 

incolumem  tibi  me  praestant  Septembribus  horis. 

Tu  recte  vivis,  si  curas  esse  quod  audis. 

lactamus  iam  pridem  omnis  te  Roma  beatum  ;*"" 

sed  vereor,  ne  cui  de  te  plus  quani  tibi  cre'das, 
20      neve  putes  alium  sapiente  bonoque  beatum, 


cool     and     clear    that    even    the 
Hebrus  does  not  surpass  it.' 

13.  ambiat:      'winds     through 
Thrace.1 

14.  infirmo  capiti :  cf.  Epist.  i, 
1 5, 8  and  note.  —  alvo :  this  may  re- 
fer to  the  same  treatment  or  to  the 
excellence  of  the  water  for  drinking. 

15.  latebrae:  so  in  Sat.  2,6,  16 
it  is  called  arx,  a  place  of  refuge. 
This  is   the  answer  to  the   ques- 
tions that  might  be  asked  (vss.  2- 
3)  about  the  productiveness  of  the 
farm. — dulces,  amoenae:  the  dis- 
tinctions made  in  books  on  syn- 
onymy  between    such    adjectives 
are  often  forced;  each  ca-e  must 
be  judged  singly.     Here  it  is  plain 
that  amoenae  expresses  something 
beyond  dulces;  dear  (to  my  feed- 
ing) and  delightful  (in  itself).  — 
si  credis :  humorously  deprecating. 

16.  Septembribus:     the     worst 
time  of  the  year  in  Rome. 

17.  tu :    turning  from    his   own 
affairs  to  the  affairs  and  situation 
of  Ouinctius.  —  quod  audis  :  '  what 
people   call   you,1  'what   you   are 
said    to   be.1     Cf.  Epist.   I,  7,  38, 
Sat.  2,  3,  298. 


18.  iactamus :    'we   have    been 
declaring,'  '  saying  openly  1 ;  there 
is    no    necessary    implication    of 
boasting.  —  iam  pridem:       not, 
therefore,    because    of    any    new 
honor,  but  because  of  Quinctius1 
high  standing.  —  omnis  .  .  .  Roma: 
so  dicemus  chritas  omnis,  Carm. 
4,    2,    50 ;    eamus    omnis    civitas, 
Kpod.    1 6,   36.  —  te  .  .  .  beatum: 
this  is  quod  audis. 

19.  ne  .  . .  credas :  this  common- 
place of  philosophy,  which  means 
in  essence  that  one  should  not  be 
puffed  up  by  popular  favor,  is  first 
put   in    general    terms   and    then 
more  specifically  explained  and  il- 
lustrated in  the  next  lines.     These 
verses  form  a  transition  from  the 
opening  of  the  Epistle  to  the  main 
thought,  that  the  wise  man  is  one 
who  lives  by  the  precepts  of  phi- 
losophy, and  are  not  to  be  under- 
stood   as    referring    to    anything 
definite  in  the  character  or  situ- 
ation of  Quinctius.     He  is  merely 
the  man  of  high  position  to  whom 
these  exhortations  may  be  fittingly 
addressed. 

20.  Another  form  of  the  Stoic 


99 


I,  16,  21] 


HOKATI 


neu,  si  te  populus  sanum  recteque  valentem 
dictitet,  occultam  febrem  sub  tempus  edendi 
dissimules,  donee  manibus  tremor  incidat  unctis. 
Stultorum  incurata  pudor  malus  ulcera  celat. 

25      Si  quis  bella  tibi  terra  pugnata  marique 

dicat,  et  his  verbis  vacuas.permulceat  aures: 
'  Tene  magis  salvum  populus  velit  an  populum  tu, 
servet  in  ambiguo,  qui  consulit  et  tibi  et  urbi, 
luppiter,'  Augusti  laudes  agnoscere  possis  : 

30      cum  pateris  sapiens  emendatusque  vocari, 


Paradox,  to  which  Horace  fre- 
quently refers  in  the  Satires. — 
alium  sapiente:  so  species  alias 
zvris,  Sat.  2,  3,  208 ;  alius  Lysippo, 
Epist.  2,  I,  240  and  often. 

21-23.  This  is  Horace's  favorite 
method  of  presenting  an  argument, 
by  means  of  an  implied  comparison ; 
'do  not  belike  a  man  who.  .  .  .'  — 
dictitet :  the  same  in  sense  as 
iactamus,  vs.  18.  —  edendi:  i.e. , 
he  feels  the  chill  coming  on  just 
as  he  is  going  to  the  table, 
but  tries  to  conceal  it  from  his 
guests.  —  manibus :  where  the  chill 
would  first  betray  itself.  —  unctis: 
the  food  was  taken  up  with  the 
fingers,  and  the  meaning  is, 'after 
you  have  begun  your  dinner,' 
when  it  is  more  inconvenient  than 
it  would  have  been  before  the  din- 
ner began. 

24.  stultorum :  emphatic ;  '  only 
fools,   not  sapientes."1  —  The   line 
is  a  second  argument  by  compari- 
son ; '  do  not  be  like  a  man  who. . . .' 

25.  tibi:  with  pugnata.     This 


harmonizes  with  the  implication  of 
vs.  1 8,  that  Quinctius  was  a  man 
who  had  been  long  active  in  public 
life  and  had  taken  part  in  the  civil 
wars. 

26.  vacuas:  'ready'  to  listen; 
cf.  Epist.  1 ,  1 8,  70,  patnlae  aures, 
and,  in  a.  slightly  different  sense, 
Epist.  I,  i,  7,  purgatam  aurem. 

27-29.  These  verses  are  said  by 
the  Scholiast  to  be  taken  from  a 
Panegyric  of  Augustus,  by  Varius. 
The  quotation  of  them  is  there- 
fore a  double  compliment.  —  servet 
in  ambiguo:  i.e.,  'I  pray  that  we 
may  never  be  forced  to  decide  be- 
tween your  safety  and  the  safety  of 
the  state.'— et  tibi  et  urbi:  re- 
peating the  contrast  of  populus  an 
tu.  —  agnoscere  :  both  because  the 
verses  were  so  well  known  and 
because  the  praise  was  suitable 
only  to  Augustus. 

30.  pateris :  '  allow  yourself  to 
be  called,'  without  protest.  For 
the  nomin.  after  the  infin.  there  are 
many  parallels,  e.g. ,  in  vs.  32  and 


100 


EPISTVLAE  [i,  16,  37 

,t^M 

respondesne  tuo,  die  sodes,  nomine  ?     '  Nempe 
vjr  bonus  et  prudens  dici  deiector  ego  ac  tu.' 
Qui  dedit  hoc  hodie,  eras,  si  volet,  auferet,  ut,  si 
detulerit  fasces  indigno,  detrahet  idem. 
'  Pone,  meum  est,'  inquit:  pono  tristisque  recedo 


35 


Idem  si  clamet  furem,  neget  esse  pudicum, 


X^  '  O 1 7  .  *yJ 

contendat  laqueo  collum  pressisse  paternum, 

(A 

-  •    fasces  :  for  any  high  office. 

not  with  reference  to 


Epist.  I,  5,  15.  It  is  a  perfectly 
natural  deviation  from  the  mechan- 
ical accus.  and  not  a  Grecism.  Cf. 
Sat.  I,  1,19,  licet  esse  beatis. 

31.  respondesne:    not  equal  to 
nonne  respondes,  but  with  a  formal 
neutrality ;  '  do  you  answer  or  do 
jou  not  ? '  —  tuo  . .  .  nomine :  i.e. , 
'for    yourself,'    by   accepting   the 
description  as  really  applicable  to 
you.  —  die   sodes :    a    formula    of 
appeal,  as    in    Epist.    i,    i,    62. 
sodes  =  si  audes,  with  the  earlier 
meaning otaudeo(=  avideo,  aveo). 

32.  bonus  et  prudens :   a  more 
modest  substitute  for  sapiens  emen- 
datusque.  —  delecto*-  :    intention- 
ally  stronger  than   pateris.  —  ac 
tu :  a  retort ;  'just  as  you  do,  in 
spite  of  your  superior  tone.1  —  The 
whole  line  is  a  restatement  of  vs. 
30,  but  in  terms  which  satisfy  the 
speaker  better  than  pateris  sapiens 
emendatusque ;  'of  course  I  like  to 
be  called  a  respectable  and  sensible 
man,  and  so  do  you.' 

33.  qui  dedit:  i.e.,  public  opin- 
ion.    The    reply,  as   so   often  in 
Horace,  begins  without  an  intro- 
ductory   conjunction,  at   or    sed. 
Cf.  Sat.  I,  i,  36. 


34- 
— detrahet: 

any  legal  impeachment,  but  merely 
as  a  vivid  expression  for  the  with- 
drawal of  favor. 

35.  The    figure   in   this   vs.   is 
slightly  changed  from  that  of  the 
preceding  line  ;  it  is  the  figure  of 
a  person  taking  up  an  object,- any 
object,  and   being  interrupted  by 
the  rightful  owner.     The  subject 
of  meum  est  is  not  officium  (from 
fasces')   or  nomen,  but  is  entirely 
indefinite  ;    'put  that   down,  it's 
mine.'     The  variation  of  thought 
in  vss.  35,  34,  35,  is  thoroughly 
Horatian  ;    '  public  opinion   may 
take  away  reputation,  as  the  voters 
may  take  away  the  office  they  gave, 
or  as  any  man  may  reclaim  what 
is  his  own.' 

36.  idem :    the   person  who   is 
vaguely  thought  of  as  the  subject 
of  inquit,  with  a  slighter  reference 
back  to  the  subjects  of  detrahet 
and  auferet.     The  force  of  idem 
is,    as    often,    adversative ;     '  but 
when  that  same  man  accuses  me 
unjustly,  I   can  regard   him   with 
indifference.' 

37.  laqueo :  this  is  a  proverbial 


101 


I,  16,  38] 


HOKATI 


45 


mordear  opprobriis  falsis  mutemque  colores  ? 

Falsus  honor  iuvat  et  mendax  infamia  terret 

quern  nisi  mendosum  et  medicandum  ?     Vir  bonus  est 

quis  ? 

Qui  consulta  patrum,  qui  leges  iuraque  servat; 
quo  multae  magnaeque  secantur  iudice  lites ; 
quo  res  sponsore  et  quo  causae  teste  tenentur. 
Sed  videt  hunc  omnis  domus  et  vicinia  tota 
introrsum  turpem,  speciosum  pelle  decora. 
'  Nee  furtum  feci  nee  fugi '  si  mini  dicat 
servus,  '  Habes  pretium,  loris  non  ureris,'  aio. 
1  Non  hominem  occidi.'     '  Non  pasces  in  cruce  corvos.' 
'  Sum  bonus  et  frugi.'     Renuit  negitatque  Sabellus. 
Cautus  enim  metuit  foveam  lupus  accipiterque 


form  of  exaggerated  accusation ; 
cf.  Carm.  2, 13,  5  ;  Epod.  3,  i  f. 

39.  falsus  honor :  the  substance 
of  vss.  25-32.  —  mendax  infamia  : 
vss.  36-37. 

41-43.  This  is  the  answer  of 
the  popular  judgment  to  the  ques- 
tion of  vs.  40,  not  Horace's  own 
answer,  which  is  given  in  an 
indirect  way  in  vss.  73  ff. — se- 
cantur: are  decided;  cf.  Sat.  i, 
10,  15,  ridiculum  .  .  .  magnas 
plerumque  secat  res.  —  sponsore  : 
i.e.,  as  a  responsible  man  in  busi- 
ness affairs.  —  teste:  his  evidence 
on  the  witness  stand  is  accepted 
as  decisive.  —  tenentur :  used  in  a 
general  sense  with  res  (are  settled) 
and  in  a  technical  sense,  of  win- 
ning a  case  at  law,  with  causae 
(are  won). 

45.   An  allusion  to  the  fable  of 

IO2 


the  Ass  in  the  Lion's  Skin,  to 
which  Horace  alludes  also  in  Sat. 
1, 6,  22  ;  2,  i,  64  f.,  in  phrases  very 
similar  to  those  used  here. 

47.  loris :  leather  thongs  for 
whipping  a  slave.  — ureris :  so  Sat. 
2>  7>  58,  uri  -virgis. 

49.  The  unexpressed  thought  is 
'since  I  am  innocent  of  these 
things,  I  am  therefore  an  upright 
man.'  But  this  claim  the  strict 
judge  refuses  to  admit.  The  same 
course  of  reasoning  is  followed  in 
Sat.  2,  3,  159-162,  with  the  same 
parody  of  the  Stoic  manner.  — 
Sabellus :  as  a  type  of  the  strict 
moralist,  who  is  not  satisfied  with 
good  conduct  unless  the  motive  is 
also  good. 

50-51.  '  For  mere  caution  in 
avoiding  trouble  is  shown  by  birds 
and  animals,'  and  is  therefore  not 


55 


60 


EPISTVLAE  [i,  1 6,  64 

A    v  vXV  \\.t^~^ 

suspectos  laqueos  et  opertum  miluus  hamum. 

Oderunt  peccare  boni  virtutis  amore  : 

tu  nihil  admittes  in  te  formidine  poenae; 

sit  spes  fallendi,  miscebis  sacra  profanis, 

nam  de  mille  fabae  modiis  cum  surripis  unum, 

damnum  est,  non  facinus,  mihi  pacto  lenius  isto. 

Vir  bonus,  omne  forum  quern  spectat  et  omne  tribunal, 

quandocumque  deos  vel  porco  vel  bove  placat, 

'  lane  pater,'  clare,  clare  cum  dixit  '  Apollo ' ; 

labra  movet  metuens  audiri :  '  Pulchra  Laverna, 

da  mihi  fajlere  !     Da  iusto  sanctoque  videri ! 

Noctem  peccatis  et  fraudibus  obice  nubem  ! ' 

Qui  melior  servo,  qui  liberior  sit  avarus, 

in  triviis  fixum  cum  se  demittit  ob  assem, 


a  virtuous  motive.  —  foveam :  pit- 
fall. —  miluus  :  in  three  syllables  ; 
this  variety  of  fish  takes  its  name 
from  the  bird,  and  the  word  may 
be  rendered  kite-fish. 

52-53-  The  ablatives,  amore,  for- 
midine, are  the  important  words. 

56.  damnum :  the  pecuniary  loss, 
which    is    trifling. — facinus:    the 
sin  ;  sc.  tibi  lenius. — pacto  .  . .  isto  : 
repeating  the  thought  of  cum  sur- 
ripis unum.     isto  is  in  the  proper 
second  person  sense.  — The  argu- 
ment is  that  the  sin  is  not  to  be 
measured  by  the  extent  of  the  loss 
inflicted,  but  by  the  motive  that 
prompts  it.     This  is  not  precisely 
the  Stoic  doctrine  that  all  sins  are 
equal  and  deserve  a  like  penalty. 

57.  vir  bonus  :  still  in  the  iron- 
ical sense,  as  in  41   flf.,  and  there- 
fore defined  in  the  rest  of  the  line, 


'  the  man  whom  the  popular  judg- 
ment approves.'  —  forum:  cf.  vs. 
41.  —  tribunal:  cf.  vs.  42. 

60.  labra  movet :  without  utter- 
ing any  sound ;    in  contrast  with 
clare,  clare.  —  Laverna:  the  god- 
dess of  theft. 

61.  iusto :  cf.  Sat.  I,  I,  19,  licet 
esse  beatis,  and  vs.  30  above,  with 
note. 

63.  qui :  how,  with  the  indirect 
question  after  non  video.  —  servo  : 
after    both    melior    and    liberior, 
which  are  predicates  after  sit. 

64.  fixum  .  .  .  assem :    this    is 
explained  by  the  scholiast  on  Per- 
sius  5,  111;    <quia  solent  pueri,  ut 
ridendi  causam  habeant,  assem  in 
silice  [the  pavement"]  plumbatum 
\i.e.  with   melted  lead']  figere,  ut 
qui  viderint  se  ad  tollendum  eum 
inclinent  nee  tamen  possint  evel- 


103 


i,  16,  65] 


HORATI 


65      non  video  ;  nam  qui  cupiet,  metuet  quoque ;  porro 
qui  metuens  vivet,  liber  mihi  non  erit  unquam. 
Perdidit  arma,  locum  virtutis  deseruit,  qui 
semper  in  augenda  festinat  et  obruitur  re. 
Vendere  cum  possis  captivum,  occidere  noli ; 

70      serviet  utiliter :  sine  pascat  durus  aretque ; 
naviget  ac  mediis  hiemet  mercator  in  undis ; 
annonae  prosit,  portet  frumenta  penusque. 
Vir  bonus  et  sapiens  audebit  dicere  :  '  Pentheu, 
rector  Thebarum,  quid  me  perferre  patique 

75     indignum  coges  ? '     '  Adimam  bona.'     '  Nempe  pecus, 

rem, 

lectos,  argentum  :  tollas  licet ! '     'In  manicis  et 
compedibus  saevo  te  sub  custode  tenebo.' 


lere.  quo  facto  pueri  etiam  accla- 
mare  sclent.' 

65.  cupiet,  metuet :  d.Epist.\, 
6,  12. 

67.  arma,  locum:  acts  which 
were  proverbially  discreditable ; 
but  they  are  really  no  worse  than 
it  is  to  give  up  one's  life  to  money 
making. 

69-72.  '  Such  a  man  is  a  mere 
slave,  and  should  be  set  to  do 
slave's  work.' — captivum:  this 
carries  on  the  figure  of  vs.  67  ;  the 
coward  who  has  allowed  himself 
to  be  captured  may  be  made  use- 
ful as  a  slave.  The  verse  is  a 
scornful  bit  of  advice,  addressed 
to  the  conqueror.  —  durus:  as  a 
hard-working  farm  slave.  —  The 
agricola  and  the  mercator  (nauta) 
are  frequently  used  as  types  of 
men  who  endure  hardship  for  gain, 


e.g.y  Sat.  I,  I,  28  ff.  —  annonae: 
'let  him  help  to  keep  down  the 
cost  of  living-  by  bringing  grain 
from  Egypt.' 

73-79.  These  lines  paraphrase  a 
passage  of  Euripides  (Bacch..  492- 
498),  as  in  Sat.  2,  3,  262-271,3 
passage  from  Terence  is  transposed 
into  hexameters.  The  god,  Diony- 
sus, in  disguise  is  in  the  power 
of  Pentheus,  king  of  Thebes. — 
bonus  et  sapiens  :  the  man  who  is 
truly  good  in  heart,  and  who  re- 
lies upon  his  character  rather 
than  upon  his  reputation,  or  upon 
the  judgment  of  others.  Ci.Carm. 
3,  3,  I  ff.,  iustunt  et  tenacem. — 
perferre  patique:  cf.  Epist.  I,  15, 
17. — lectos:  for  all  his  furniture. 
—  argentum:  silver  plate,  not 
money.  —  ipse  deus  .  .  .  :  an  ex- 
act translation  of  Xixr«  fi  6 


104 


EPISTVLAE  [i,  1 6,  79 

'  Ipse  deus,  simul  atque  volam,  me  solvet.'     Opinor, 
hoc  sentit :  'moriar.'     Mors  ultima  linea  rerum  est. 

uvros   OTCLV   eyu>   0eA.a>.  —  moriar  :  harmony  with  Stoic  doctrine.     Cf. 

this  is,  of  course,  not  in  the  play,  Car  in.  i,  12,  35  f.,  Catonis  nobile 

but    is  an    interpretation   of    the  letum.  —  ultima  linea:    the  white 

scene  according   to    Stoic   ideals.  line  which  marked  the  end  of  the 

To  take  refuge  from  the  ills  of  life  race  course, 
in  self-inflicted  death  was  quite  in 

17 

The  person  to  whom  this  Epistle  is  addressed  is  wholly  unknown, 
nor  is  there  anything  in  the  letter  to  fix  the  date. 

'  I  know  that  you  need  no  advice  about  living  with  the  great,  yet  per- 
haps I  may  be  able  to  say  something  about  it  that  you  will  care  to  hear. 
If  you  prefer  a  retired  life,  you  can  find  happiness  there,  but  if  you  seek 
for  something  more,  you  must  go  where  it  is  to  be  found.  You  know 
the  story  of  Diogenes  and  Aristippus  ;  the  one  prided  himself  upon  his 
rudeness,  the  other  was  a  man  of  the  world.  It  was  the  latter  who  was 
truly  a  philosopher,  for  if  it  is  a  worthy  ambition  to  desire  to  be  dis- 
tinguished in  public  life,  then  it  is  also  a  worthy  ambition  to  desire  to 
please  the  men  who  are  thus  distinguished.  To  refuse  to  make  the 
attempt  is  a  kind  of  cowardice ;  to  enter  the  contest  and  win  a  place  is 
honorable. 

'  But  I  don't  mean  that  one  should  be  a  beggar,  always  parading  his 
needs  and  his  misfortunes.  The  Egyptian  humbug,  pretending  to  have 
broken  his  leg  in  order  to  excite  pity,  fools  only  the  inexperienced.' 

There  is  scarcely  anything  of  the  epistolary  form  or  tone  in  this 
letter.  It  is  a  discourse,  partly  serious,  but  largely  ironical,  on  the 
proper  attitude  toward  men  of  higher  rank.  This  was  a  subject  which 
Horace  had  himself  been  obliged  to  consider  with  serious  attention. 
His  relation  to  Maecenas  and  Augustus  and  Agrippa  had  exposed  him 
to  criticism  and  had  been  .in  itself  difficult  to  reconcile  with  that  inde- 
pendence of  life  and  thought  which  he  desired  to  maintain.  It  was 
impossible  for  him  to  write  on  this  subject  without  a  consciousness, 
which  reveals  itself  in  several  places,  of  his  own  personal  interest  in  it. 
To  some  extent,  therefore,  it  is  seriously  meant ;  the  attitude  and  teach- 
ing of  Aristippus  in  regard  to  social  relations  command  Horace's  ap- 
proval. On  the  other  hand,  the  relation  of  the  man  of  humbler  rank 
to  the  greater  men  is  almost  everywhere  treated  as  though  the  ultimate 

105 


I,  17,  0  HORATI 

object  of  it  was  profit,  not  real  friendship.    This  is,  of  course,  ironical, 
and  at  the  close,  from  vs.  43  to  the  end,  it  becomes  pure  satire. 

It  is  certainly  difficult  for  the  modern  reader,  accustomed  to  demo- 
cratic ideals,  to  estimate  this  Epistle  quite  justly,  not  taking  it  too 
seriously  and  yet  not  overlooking  the  serious  meaning.  For  a  full 
understanding  of  Horace's  attitude  on  this  subject,  this  Epistle  should 
be  compared  with  the  next  and  both  should  be  read  in  connection  with 
Epist.  i,  7,  to  Maecenas. 

Quamvis,  Scaeva,  satis  per  te  tibi  consulis,  et  scis 
quo  tandem  pacto  deceat  maioribus  uti, 
disce,  docendus  adhuc  quae  censet  amiculus,'  ut  si 
caecus  iter  monstrare  velit ;  tamen  adspice  si  quid 
/5      et  nos,  quod  cures  proprium  fecisse,  loquamur. 

Si  te  grata  quies  et  primam  somnus  in  horam 
^delectat,  si  te  pulvis  strepitusque  rotarum, 

\     si  laedit  caupona,  Ferentinum  ire  iubebo. 
r  . 

X..  p*  Nam  neque  divitibus  contingunt  gaudia  solis, 
10      nec  vixit  male  qui  natus  moriensque  fefellit.v  />  '-• 

1.  quamvis  ...  per  te :  cf.  A. P.  culus\  'a  friend  who  admits  that 
366  f.,  quamvis  .  .  .  per  te  sapis;  he  has  himself  still  much  to  learn.' 
this  is  a  modest  formula  to  soften  This  and  the  diminutive  amiculus, 
the  assumption    of  wisdom   that  '  a   humble   friend,1   continue    the 
may  be  involved  in  proffering  ad-  deprecatory  tone  of  vs.  I. 

vice,    per  te,  'without  advice  from  5.   etnos:  the  amiculus.  —  pro- 

any  one.'  prium  fecisse  :  to  adopt. 

2.  tandem:    frequent   in   direct  6-10.    'It  you  choose  a  retired 
questions  and  then  retained  in  the  life,  it  will  bring  its  own  rewards.' 
indirect.  —  maioribus:   the  great;  —primam...  in  horam:    in  con- 
this  plain  recognition  of  difference  trast   to   the  early  rising   for  the 
in  station  is  common  in  all  socie-  salntatio ;  cf.  Sat.  I,  i,  10.  —  ro- 
ties  where  there  is  an  established  tarum,  caupona :    the   discomforts 
nobility. — uti:  to  get  along  with,  of  travel,  when  the  follower  was 
to  associate  with.     There   is   no  under    obligation    to    attend    his 
suggestion  of  making  use  of  for  patron   on   a  journey,  as  Horace 
one's  own  advantage.  had  attended   Maecenas    on    the 

3.  docendus  adhuc:   with   ami-  journey  to  Brundisium.  —  Ferenti- 

106 


EPISTVLAE 


[it  '7.  »9 


Si  prodesse  tuis  paulloque  benignius  ipsum 
te  tractare  voles,  accedes  siccus  ad  unctum. 
rSi  pranderet  holus  patienter,  regibus  uti 
nollet  Aristippus.'     '  Si  sciret  regibus  uti, 
15      fasticlirct  holus  qui  me  notat.'     Vtrius  horum 

verba  probes  et  facta,  doce,  vel  iunior  audi 
7»  .-,  av^cur  sit  Aristippi  potior  sententia.     Namque 
mordacem  Cynicum  sic  eludebat,  ut  aiunt : 
'  Scurror  ego  ipse  mihi,  populo  tu ;  rectius  hoc  et 


num :  one  of  the  small  mountain 
towns,  selected  merely  as  a  type 
of  a  retired  spot.  — natus  .  .  .  fe- 
fellit :  '  whose  birth  and  death 
have  passed  unnoticed.' 

11.  si:    the    second    and    con- 
trasting possibility  is   introduced, 
as  often,  without   an   adversative 
particle,  the  adversative  connection 
being  implied  in  the  thought.  — 
prodesse  tuis :  cf.  vs.  46 ;  there  is 
some  irony  in  putting  care  for  one's 
friends  first  and  benignius  ipsum 
second,  and  in  the  use  of  paullo. 

12.  accedes:  future  almost  with 
impv.  force.  —  siccus :  thirsty,  but 
implying  hunger  also ;  cf.  Sat.  2, 
2,  14,  siccus,  inanis.  — unctum:  to 
a  rich  table]  cf.  Epist.  i,  15,44. 
The   contrast    between    rich    and 
poor  is  often  expressed,  as  here,  in 
terms  of  food  and  drink ;  in  this 
case  it  prepares  for  the  story  which 
follows. 

13-15.  The  dialogue  is  para- 
phrased from  Diog.  Laert.  2,  8,  68. 
Diogenes  the  Cynic  was  washing 
some  vegetables,  preparing  for  his 


plain  meal,  when  Aristippus  hap- 
pened to  pass  by.  —  patienter :  i.e. 
'  with  the  endurance  which  we 
Cynics  teach  and  practice.'  —  regi- 
bus :  Aristippus  lived  for  a  time  in 
the  court  of  Dionysius,  the  tyrant 
of  Syracuse.  —  si  sciret:  i.e.,  'if 
the  Cynic  know  how  to  live  rea- 
sonably with  all  men,  even  kings, 
as  my  philosophy  teaches.' — notat : 
censures;  cf.  Sat.  i,  3,  24,  note. 

16.  verba  .  .  .  et  facta:    'their 
teachings  and  their  lives.' 

17.  potior:  in  this  particular  in- 
stance ;  but  all  the  references  to 
Aristippus  (Sat.  2,  3,  100;  Epist. 
i,    i,    1 8)    are  respectful,  and  he 
seems  to  have  stood  in  Horace's 
mind  as  a  good  type  of  the  mean  be- 
tween Stoicism  and  Epicureanism. 

1 8.  mordacem:    this    particular 
adj.   is    selected   because   of   the 
derivation  of  Cynicus  from  KVCDV,  a 
dog.  —  eludebat :  parried,  dodged ; 
a  word  used  of  the  movement  of  a 
gladiator. 

19.  scurror :  i.e., '  we  both  play 
the  scurra,  the  parasite  and  hanger- 


107 


I,  17,  20] 


HORATI 


20      splendidius  multo  est.     Equus  ut  me  portet,  alat  rex, 
officium  facio ;  tu  poscis  vilia,  verum 
dante  minor,  quamvis  fers  te  nullius  egentem.' 
Omnis  Aristippum  decuit  color  et  status  et  res, 
temptantem  maiora,  fere  praesentibus  aequum. 

25      Contra,  quern  duplici  panno  patientia  velat, 
mirabor  vitae  via  si  conversa  decebit. 
Alter  purpureum  non  exspectabit  amictum, 
quidlibet  indutus  celeberrima  per  loca  vadet 
personamque  feret  non  inconcinnus  utramque ; 

30      alter  Mileti  textam  cane  peius  et  angui 


on,  if  you  choose  to  put  it  so,  but 
my  way  of  doing  it  is  the  better.'  — 
mihi,  populo :  i.e.,  'I  do  it  for  my 
own  sake,  for  my  own  approval, 
you  for  the  approval  of  the  crowd.1 
20.  equus  .  .  .  rex :  a  Greek 
proverb ;  limps  /AC  <^>cp«,  ftaai- 


21-22.  officium:  as  courtier, but 
intentionally  neutral,  so  that  it 
might  mean  '  as  scurra."1  —  poscis  : 
Diogenes  was  supported  by  gifts 
which  he  begged  from  his  admirers. 

—  verum :  '  and  yet  you  are  infe- 
rior to  those  who  bestow  the  gifts.1 

—  fers  te :    boast  yourself.  —  The 
point  of  the  retort  is  that  Aristippus 
gets  a  real  reward,  while  Diogenes, 
just  as  truly  a  courtier,  gets  only  a 
petty  reward. 

23-24.  color:  cf.  Sat*  2,  I,  60, 
iritaecolor.  —  temptantem  maiora : 
this  line  is  a  free  rendering  of  a 
doctrine  of  the  school  of  Aristippus, 
as  vs.  23  is  a  characterization  of  him 
from  Greek  sources.  —  praesenti- 


bus :    neut.  plur.  dat. ;   '  what  he 
had,1  in  distinction  from  maiora. 

25.  duplici  panno:  the  SwrAois, 
the  cloak  of  the  Cynics,  folded  over 
to   take  the  place  of  both  inner 
and  outer  garment.     It  is  called 
pannus  in  contempt,  because  the 
philosopher  wore  old  and  coarse 
clothing,  to  prove  his  indifference 
to  luxury  and  his  endurance  {pi- 
tientid). 

26.  vitae  via  .  .  .  conversa:  i.e., 
the  change  from  his  ostentatious 
asceticism   to    ordinary  life   with 
other  men. 

27^-28.  non  exspectabit :  i.e.,  he 
is  not  dependent  upon  some  par- 
ticular kind  of  dress  to  support  his 
character  as  a  philosopher,  but  is 
at  ease  in  any  dress  (quidlibet 
indutus')  and  any  company.  This 
characteristic  of  Aristippus  was 
traditional. 

29.  utramque:   either  the  man 
of  the  world  or  the  philosopher. 

30.  alter:    Diogenes. — Mileti: 


1 08 


EPISTVLAE 


[i. 


vitabit  chlamydem,  morietur  frigore,  si  non 
rettuleris  pannum  ;  refer,  et  sine  vivat  ineptus  f 
Res  gerere  et  captos  ostendere  civibus  hostis, 
attingit  solium  lovis  et  caelestia  tentat; 
principibus  placuisse  viris  non  ultima  laus  est. 
Non  cuivis  homini  contingit  adire  Corinthum. 
Sedit  qui  timuit  ne  non  succederet.     Esto ; 
quid,  qui  pervenit,  fecitne  viriliter  ?     Atqui 
hie  est  aut  nusquam  quod  quaerimus.     Hie  onus  horret, 
ut  parvis  animis  et  parvo  corpore  maius ; 


40 

the  woolen  fabrics  of  Miletus  were 
famous  for  their  fineness.  —  cane: 
put  in  only  for  the  joke  on  the 
Cynic;  cf.  mordacem,  vs.  18,  and 
note. 

32.  rettuleris:  there  is  a  story 
that  Diogenes  refused  to  exchange 
his  coarse  cloak  for  the  better  gar- 
ment of  Aristippus,  preferring  to 
suffer  from  cold  rather  than  to 
appear  in  public  in  anything  but 
his  philosopher's  dress. 

34.  attingit  solium  :  cf.  the  va- 
rious expressions  for  this  thought 
in  Cartn.  I,  i,  evehit  ad  deos,  sub- 
limi  feriam  sidera  vertice,  and  for 
caelestia    tentat    cf.    Carm.   3,  2, 
2 1  f.,  virtus,  recludens  .  .  .  caelum, 
negata  temptat  iter  via,  all  mean- 
ing to  attain  the  height  of  felicity. 

35.  principibus  placuisse :    i.e.., 
'to  have  won  the  favor  of  men  who 
have  attained  to  these  heights  is  in 
itself  no  small  credit.'     Though  the 
thought  is  put  in  general  terms, 
Horace  is  also  thinking  of  himself. 
Cf.  Sat.  2,  i,  76,  me  cum  magnis 


vixisse  .  .  .  fatebitur  .   .   .   in- 
vidia,  and  Epist.  I,  20,  23. 

36.  A  translation  of  the  Greek 
saying  ov  TTUVTOS  dvSpos  es  KopivOov 
la#'  6  TrXovs,  with  the  general  mean- 
ing that  not  every  man  can  suc- 
ceed in  getting  the  prize,  i.e.,  in 
winning  the  favor  of  men  of  posi- 
tion. 

37.  sedit:     a  true  perfect,  not 
'  gnomic  ' ;    '  the    man    who    was 
afraid  of  failure  sat  still  and  avoided 
the  contest.'     There  is  a  reference, 
apparently,  to  the  contestants  at  the 
games,  who  are  summoned  by  the 
herald  to  enter  the  race. — esto: 
•very  good;  'suppose  he  did  well 
to  decline  the  contest,  yet  we  must 
say  that  the  man  who  entered  and 
ran  to  the  end  was  even  better.1 

38-39.  atqui :  adversative  to  the 
interrogative  form  of fecitne ;  '  but 
you  must  not  avoid  the  issue  by  a 
question,  for  this  is  the  very  point 
of  the  whole  discussion.' 

39-41.  hie :  a  man  like  Diogenes, 
one  who  prefers  not  to  enter  the 


109 


X 


I,  17,41]  I  HORATI 

\    ir  ^^\ 

'  hie  subit  et  perfert.  i  Aut  virtus  nomen  inane  est,'" 

aut  decus  et  pt^imim  recte  petit  experiens  vir. 

_\          ^\\     ^J^n   •  """"^ 

Coram  rege  sua  de  paupertate  tacentes 
plus  poscente  ferent.     Distat,  sumasne  pudenter, 
45      an  rapias.     Atqui  rerum  caput  hoc  erat,  hie  fons. 
'  Indotata  mihi  soror  est,  paupercula  mater, 
et  fundus  nee  vendibilis  nee  pascere  firmus,' 
qui  dicit,  clamat '  victum  date ' ;  succ^jnit  alter 
'  et  mihi ' ;  dividuo  findetur  munere  quadra. 


social  contest  at  all,  but  to  keep 
wholly  out  of  the  activity  of  life,  as 
in  vss.  6-10. — hie  subit:  a  man 
of  the  type  of  Aristippus,  one  who 
dares  to  play  his  part  among  men. 
Cf.  vss.  H-I2. 

41-42.  virtus  :  with  a  reference 
back  to  "viriliter.  —  decus :  '  the 
credit  of  having  won  favor.'  — 
recte  :  justly.  —  experiens  :  qui 
omnia  experitur,  '  the  man  who 
dares  make  the  attempt ' ;  joined 
by  Cicero withfortis  andiprotnptus. 
—  This  is  a  summary  of  the  whole 
argument  from  vs.  6.  The  man 
who  chooses  a  quiet  life,  Diogenes 
in  his  tattered  cloak,  the  timid  man 
who  shuns  the  contest,  represent 
one  side  of  the  argument ;  the  man 
of  some  ambition,  the  philosopher, 
like  Aristippus,  who  is  neverthe- 
less a  man  of  the  world,  the  con- 
testant who  risks  defeat,  these  are 
on  the  other  side,  and  vs.  42  gives 
the  decision  in  their  favor. 

43-61.  As  many  of  these  satires 
close  with  a  humorous  turn,  so  the 
thought  of  this  Epistle  turns  at  this 


point  to  a  humorous  treatment  ol 
the  theme,  which  may  be  com- 
pared to  the  ironical  advice  of 
Tiresias  to  Ulysses  in  Sat.  2,  5, 
88-98. 

43.  rege :  the  word  that  a  para- 
site uses  of  his  patron,  not  as  in 
vss.  13,  14,  nor  as  in  Epist.  i,  7, 

37- 

44.  distat:    it  makes  a  great 
difference. 

45.  atqui:   as  in  vs.  38;  'and 
yet  this  very  difference  was  the 
point    of    my  argument.'  —  erat : 
i.e.,  all  the  time,  in  all  the  preced- 
ing argument. 

47.  firmus :    suitable,  giving    a 
secure  income  by  pasturing  flocks 
and  herds. 

48.  qui  dicit,  clamat :  i.e.,  such 
statements  are  in  effect  a  beggar's 
outcry.  —  alter :  another,  a  second 
man ;  not  the  other. 

49.  findetur :  '  the  result  of  such 
shameless  begging  will    be    that 
each  man  will  get  half  a  loaf.  — 
dividuo:  predicate. — quadra:  the 
loaf,  the  piece ;  there  is  ao  sugges- 


uo 


EPISTVLAE 


I 


»7.  62 


Sed  tacitus  pascl  si  posset  corvus,  haberet 
plus  dapis  et  rix  le  multo  minus  invidiaeque. 
Brundisium  com  ss  aut  Surrentum  ductus  amoenum 

qui  queritjir  salebras  et  acecbum  frigus  et  imj}res, 

^«7ZtV          ..•dfa&%&4  - 
aut  cistam  effractam  et  sulxmcla  viatica  ploratt 

nota  refert  meretricisjicumiji|i.  saepe  catellam,'9  '  •  ^ 

saepe  periscelidem  raptam  sibi  flent 

nulla  fides  damnis  verisque  doloribus  adsit.- 

Nee  seinel  irrisus  triviis  attollere  curat 

fracto  cr&re  planum,  licet  illi  plurima  manet 

lacrima,  per  sanctum  iuratus  dicat  Osirim : 

'  Credite,  non  ludo ;  crudeles,  tollite  claudum ! ' 

'  Quaere  peregrinum,'  vicinia  rauca 


tion,  of  course,  of  dividing   into 
four  parts. 

50-51.  tacitus  pasci :  the  cawing 
of  the  crow  when  it  finds  some- 
thing to  eat  attracts  other  birds 
which  want  a  share  ot  the  food. 
There  is  no  allusion  to  the  fable  of 
the  Fox  and  the  Crow. 

52.  Brundisium:    cf.  6Vz/.  I,  5; 
the  naming  of  this  place  is  one  of 
the  many  personal  touches  in  this 
letter  which    show    that    Horace 
was  thinking  of  his  own  relation 
to   Maecenas  and   other  men   of 
position  in  public  life. 

53.  salebras:  roughnesses;  only 
here  in  Horace. 

55.  refert:  brings  back  to  mem- 
ory. —  acumina  :  tricks.  —  catel- 
lam:  diminutive  of  catena. 

57.  veris:    real,   t.e.,   different 


from  the  trifling  matters  of  vs.  54, 
which  are  no  more  than  the  ordi- 
nary incidents  of  travel,  not  worth 
a  moment's  notice. 

58.  triviis:    the  impostor,  pre- 
tending to  be  suffering  from  an 
accident,   selects    a    place   where 
many  persons  would  be  passing. 

59.  planum :  TrXdvof^n^impos- 
tor;  not  the  adj.  plantis.  —  manet : 
from  mano,  not  from  maneo. 

60.  Osirim  :   the  cheat  was   an 
Egyptian  and   swore   by  his  own 
god.      Rome   swarmed   with   for- 
eigners who  lived  by  their  wits. 

62.  peregrinum :  i.e.,  '  try  your 
tricks  on  some  one  who  doesn't 
know  you.1  —  vicinia :  this  con- 
tinues the  same  thought,  that  the 
tricks  had  been  tried  too  often  in 
that  neighborhood. 


I,  1  8]  HORATI 

' 


This  Epistle  was  written  in  the  year  20  B.C.,  as  the  reference  to  the 
recovery  of  Roman  standards  from  the  Parthians  (vss.  56  f.)  shows, 
and  is  addressed  to  the  Lollius  to  whom  Epist.  i,  2  was  written. 

4  Lack  of  independence  is  a  fault  to  be  avoided,  my  dear  Lollius,  in 
your  relation  to  a  man  of  rank,  but  lack  of  common  sense  is  worse. 
The  true  course  lies  between.  The  lack  of  self-respect  makes  a  man  a 
mere  parasite  ;  lack  of  judgment  makes  him  assert  his  independence  by 
wrangling  about  trifles. 

'  Do  not  try  to  rival  your  patron  in  extravagance  ;  he  will  not  like  you 
the  better  for  it,  and  you  cannot  afford  it.  The  ill-natured  witticism  of 
Volumnius,  that  the  best  way  to  ruin  a  man  was  to  give  him  a  fine  coat 
and  let  him  try  to  live  up  to  it,  has  enough  of  truth  in  it  to  serve  as  a 
warning.  Do  not  try  to  learn  his  secrets  and  don't  betray  his  confi- 
dences. Don't  insist  on  following  yo«r  own  inclinations,  even  though 
they  may  seem  to  you  the  better  ;  Amphion,  you  know,  gave  up  the 
lyre  to  please  his  brother.  If  your  friend  likes  hunting  better  than 
poetry,  yield  and  go  with  him.  It  will  do  you  good  and  you  are  an 
athlete  ;  I  have  seen  you  on  the  Campus  and  I  remember  that  sea  fight 
on  your  father's  estate.  Be  careful  in  your  speech  and  in  your  conduct. 
Introduce  only  men  that  you  know  well,  and  if  you  make  a  mistake  in 
this,  don't  refuse  to  acknowledge  it.  But  stand  by  your  true  friends,  as 
you  expect  them  to  stand  by  you.  And  conform  even  to  your  patron's 
moods  ;  be  serious  when  he  is  serious,  and  gay  when  he  is  gay,  and 
keep  a  cheerful  countenance  at  all  times. 

'  But  above  all  fix  your  mind  upon  the  lessons  and  ideals  of  philosophy 
and  learn  from  them  the  secret  of  a  peaceful  life. 

'  As  for  me.  I  have  attained  to  that  peaceful  life.  I  ask  of  the  gods 
nothing  but  a  continuance  of  it.' 

This  Epistle  deals,  in  substance,  with  a  situation  like  that  which  is 
discussed  in  the  Epistle  immediately  preceding,  but  with  great  differ- 
ences both  in  form  and  in  tone.  The  epistolary  form  is  maintained 
with  much  skill  ;  there  are  many  personal  touches,  so  that  the  character 
and  situation  of  the  young  Lollius  are  clearly  defined  and  the  unnamed 
patron  is  more  than  a  lay  figure.  And  the  letter  closes  with  a  passage 
of  peculiarly  intimate  self-disclosure.  All  this  is  much  superior  to  the 
essay  form  of  Epist.  i,  17.  In  the  tone,  also,  there  is  more  of  reality. 
Here,  even  more  distinctly  than  in  the  letter  to  Scaeva,  Horace  had 
constantly  in  mind  his  own  relation  to  Maecenas  and  his  own  efforts 
to  find  the  middle  course  between  an  undue  deference  and  an  unwise 

112 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  18,  9 


independence.  As  he  was  conscious  that  he  had  succeeded  in  preserv- 
ing both  his  friendship  and  his  independence,  he  can  describe  his  own 
course,  under  the  guise  of  advice  to  a  younger  friend,  with  a  sense  of 
satisfaction. 

Si  bene  te  novi,  metues,  liberrime  Lolli, 
scurrantis  speciem  praebere,  professus  amicum. 
Vt  matrona  meretrici  dispar  erit  atque 
discolor,  infido  scurrae  distabit  amicus. 
5       Est  huic  diversum  vitio  vitium  prope  maius, 
asperitas  agrestis  et  inconcinna  gravisque, 
quae  se  commendat  tonsa  cute,  dentibus  atris, 
dum  vult  libertas  dici  mera  veraque  virtus. 
Virtus  est  medium  vitiorum  et  utrimque  reductum. 


i-2.  liberrime :  so  Sat .  i ,  4, 1 3  2 , 
liber  amicus,  free-speaking,  frank. 
The  word  gives  the  keynote  of  the 
Epistle,  which  is  addressed  to  a 
man  of  independent  character,  of 
whom  it  could  be  said  with  special 
force  metues  .  .  .praebere. — spe- 
ciem :  i.e.,  'in  your  great  independ- 
ence you  will  dislike  even  the 
appearance  of  servility.' — amicum : 
directly  after  professus;  the  con- 
crete for  the  abstract;  Carm.  I, 
35,  22,  comitem  abnegat. 

3-4.  matrona :  this  word  has 
always  an  especially  honorable 
sense.  —  discolor :  a  definition  of 
dispar.  The  meretrix  wore  a 
dark-colored  toga,  the  matrona 
a  white  stola. 

5.  est:  the  emphatic  position 
gives  an  adversative  effect ;  '  you 
need  not  fear,  for  an  amicus  is  as 
different  from  a  scurra  as  a 
matrona  from  a  meretrix.  There 

HOR.  EP.  —  8  i 


is,  however,  another  fault,  which 
your  independence  may  lead  you 
into.'  —  huic  .  .  .  vitio:  i.e.,  the 
fault  of  servility. 

6.  inconcinna:  cf.  Epist.  \,  17, 
29  ;      disagreeable,    unsuited     to 
pleasant  society. 

7.  commendat :  the  meaning  of 
the    verb    suggests    the    ironical 
turn :    cf.  Epist.  2,  i,  261 .  —  tonsa 
cute  :  i.e., '  by  hair  cut  close  to  the 
scalp,'  a  fashion  affected   by  the 
Cynics  and  by  persons  who  desired 
to   prove   themselves   superior  to 
the  prevailing  fashion.  —  dentibus 
atris :    another    way   of   showing 
independent  indifference. 

8.  libertas :    with    a    reference 
back    to   liberrime,  and  with    the 
implication  that  too  great  freedom 
of  speech    is    like    the   asperitas 
agrestis. 

9.  This  vs.,  taking  up  at   the 
beginning   the    word  with   which 


I,  1 8,  10] 


HORATI 


JO 


Alter  in  obsequium  plus  aequo  prontis  et  imi 
derisor  lecti,  sic  nutum  divitis  horret, 
sic  iterat  voces  et  verba  cadentia  tollit, 
ut  puerum  saevo  credas  dictata  magistro 
reddere  vel  partes  mimum  tractare  secundas. 
Alter  rixatur  de  lana  saepe  caprina, 
propugnat  nugis  armatus.     '  Scilicet  ut  non 
sit  mihi  prima  fides  et  vere  quod  placet  ut  non 
acriter  elatrem  ?     Pretium  aetas  altera  sordet.' 


vs.  8  ends,  is  a  well-known  defini- 
tion. Cf.  Cic.  de  Off.  i,  25,  89, 
'.  .  .  mediocritatem  illam,  quae 
est  inter  nimium  et  parum,  quae 
placet  Peripateticis,'  and  often  in 
Horace,  especially  in  Carm.  2,  IO, 
5,  aurea  niediocritas. 

10-14.  alter :  the  scurra.  —  imi 
derisor  lecti:  so  Sat.  2,  8,  40 f., 
imiconvivae  lecti,  in  the  same  place 
in  the  verse.  The  parasites  were 
on  the  lectus  imus  with  the  host. 
This  whole  passage  is  best  illus- 
trated by  a  reading  of  Sat.  2,  8. 
—  cadentia :  i.e.,  remarks  which 
have  failed  to  attract  the  attention 
of  the  guests.  —  dictata  .  .  .  red- 
dere :  cf.  Epist.  r,  I,  55,  haec  re- 
cinunt  .  .  .  dictata.  —  partes  .  .  . 
secundas :  the  second  actor  in  the 
mimes  was  expected  to '  play  up  to ' 
the  leading  actor  (cf.  Sat.  1,9, 46), 
even  repeating  his  gestures  and 
actions. 

15.  de  lana  .  .  .  caprina:  this 
appears  to  be  a  proverbial  expres- 
sion; it  is  correctly  explained  by 
the  Scholiast  as  a  trifling  question, 
whether  the  hair  of  goats  could 


properly  be  called  wool  (lana~),  a 
mere  strife  about  words. 

16.  nugis :  dative  after  propiig- 
nat.  —  armatus :    absolute  ;   *  with 
drawn  sword,'  carrying  out    the 
sense  of  propugnat.     [rixatur  de 
lana  and    propugnat    nugis    are 
different  expressions  for  the  same 
thought,  as  often  in  Horace,  eg., 
dispar  atque  discolor,  vs.  3  f.     The 
dative  after  propugnat  is  perfectly 
normal,  though  it  happens  not  to 
occur  in  classical  Latin  ;  the  abla- 
tive, either  with  propugnat  or  with 
armatus,  gives  a  wrong  sense.]  — 
scilicet:  cf.  Epist.  I,  9,  3,  note.  — 
ut  non :  a  repudiating  exclamation, 
cf.  satin  ut  in  questions  and  see 
Lane,  §§  1568,  1569.     With   this 
form  of  interrogative  exclamation 
scilicet   is    perfectly    harmonious, 
though  it  is  not  used  in  ordinary 
questions. 

17.  prima:  i.e.,  'I  should  be 
trusted  at  once,1 'my  mere  state- 
ment should  command  instant  ac- 
ceptance.1 

18.  elatrem:  with  a  hit  at  the 
Cynic  philosophy.  —  pretium  .  .  • 


114 


EPISTVLAE 


i,  18,  25 


Ambigitur  quid  enim  ?     Castor  sciat  an  Docilis  plus  ; 
Brundisium  Minuci  melius  via  ducat  an  Appi. 
Quern  damnosa  Venus,  quern  praeceps  alea  nudat, 
gloria  quern  supra  vires  et  vestit  et  unguit, 
quern  tenet  argenti  sitis  importuna  famesque, 
quern  paupertatis  pudor  et  fuga,  dives  amicus, 
saepe  decem  vitiis  instructior,  odit  et  horret, 


sordet :  a  condensed  expression  ; 
'  I  should  think  a  second  life  (the 
privilege  of  living  two  lives)  too 
small  a  price  to  pay  me  for  sub- 
mitting to  such  treatment.'  pre- 
tium  is  an  appositive  to  aetas 
alt  era. 

19.  ambigitur:  i.e.,  'what  is  all 
the  row  about  ?     Some  matter  of 
the    most    trivial    importance.'  - 
Castor  ...  an  Docilis  :  unknown ; 
they  were  actors  or  gladiators  or 
other  persons  then  well  known,  an 
allusion  to  whom  would  be  under- 
stood by  contemporary  readers.  — 
Cf.,  as  an   example  of  the  same 
kind  of   trifling  matter,  Sat.  2,  6, 
44,  Thraex  est  Gallina  Syro  par  f 
and  72,  male  necne  Lepos  saltet.  — 
sciat :  this  would  suit  either  actors 
or  gladiators. 

20.  The  via  Minucia  was  per- 
haps the  shorter  but  rougher  road, 
taken  by  Maecenas  and  Horace  in 
Sat.    i,    5.      The  via   Appia,   to 
Brundisium  by  way  of  Tarentum, 
was  longer,  but  better.  —  This  pas- 
sage, vss.  15-20,  is  one  of  those 
vivid  portraits  which  Horace  often 
draws ;   it  is  the  irascible  person 
who  is  always  ready  to  contend 


about  trifles  and  whose  intolerance 
of  the  views  of  others  is  so  great 
that  any  hesitancy  in  accepting  his 
decisions  seems  to  him  like  an 
unbearable  insult. 

21  ff.  The  general  discussion 
which  started  from  liberrime  now 
passes  over  into  special  warnings 
and  injunctions. 

21-24.  The  faults  mentioned 
have  in  common  the  characteristic 
of  leading  to  the  desire  for  money. 
—  damnosa  :  ruinous,  financially, 
not  morally.  —  supra  vires  :  cf. 
Sat.  2,  3,  I79ff.  on  the  expensive- 
ness  of  office  seeking. — et  vestit 
et  unguit :  i.e.,  leads  into  expen- 
sive habits.  —  argenti  sitis:  the 
love  of  money  for  itself  produces 
the  same  effect  as  the  need  of 
money  to  pay  gambling  debts,  i.e., 
it  makes  a  man  a  less  agreeable 
friend  and  companion.  —  pauper- 
tatis .  .  .  fuga :  this  is,  in  its 
results,  the  same  as  avaritia  ;  cf. 
Epist.  i,  16,  65  ;  i,  6, 9  and  notes. 

25.  vitiis  instructior  : <  ten  times 
as  well  provided  with  faults.'  de- 
cem is  a  round  number,  vitiis, 
abl.  of  degree  of  difference  with 
the  comparative.  The  whole  ex- 


I,  1 8,  26] 


HORATI 


aut,  si  non  odit,  regit  ac,  veluti  pia  mater, 
plus  quam  se  sapere  et  virtutibus  esse  priorem 
vult  et  ait  prope  vera :  '  Meae,  contendere  noli, 
stultitiam  patiuntur  opes ;  tibi  parvula  res  est : 

30      arta  decet  sanum  comitem  toga  ;  desine  mecum 
certare.'     Eutrapelus  cuicumque  nocere  volebat 
vestimenta  dabat  pretiosa;  beatus  enim  iam 
cum  pulchris  tunicis  sumet  nova  consilia  et  spes, 
dormiet  in  lucem,  scorto  postponet  honestum 

35     officium,  nummos  alienos  pascet,  ad  imum 


pression  is,  of  course,  humorous ; 
the  great  man,  who  has  had  plenty 
of  experience  of  all  sides  of  life, 
does  not  want  his  friend  to  bother 
him  with  small  extravagances,  but 
to  be  a  better  man  than  himself. 

26.  regit :  advises  him.  —  ma- 
ter :  parents  wish  their  children 
to  be  wiser  and  better  than  they 
have  themselves  been. 

28.  prope  vera :  i.e.,  not  philo- 
sophically true,  since  folly  is  never 
good,  but  true  enough  in  their 
present  application.  —  contendere 
noli:  parenthetic. 

30.  arta :  the  narrow  toga  is 
treated  as  a  sign  of  simplicity,  as 
in  Epod.  4,  8  the  trium  ulnarum 
toga  is  a  sign  of  ostentation. 

31-36.  Eutrapelus:  P.  Volum- 
nius,  a  Roman  knight  of  Cicero's 
time,  a  friend  of  Antony.  Two 
letters  (ad  Fam.  7,  32  and  33)  are 
addressed  to  him  by  Cicero,  both 
written  in  a  tone  of  jesting,  and  in 
one  he  alludes  to  the  evr/3a7reA.ia, 
from  which  the  name  Eutrapelus 


is  derived.  The  allusion  is  un- 
doubtedly to  some  jesting  sarcasm 
of  his,  to  the  effect  that  the  best 
way  to  ruin  an  enemy  would  be 
to  make  him  a  present  of  some 
fine  clothes ;  in  the  attempt  to 
'  live  up  to '  these  he  would  work 
out  his  own  destruction.  But  it 
begins  as  if  it  were  an  anecdote, 
like  that  of  Philippus  in  Epist.  i, 
7,  and  even  as  if  the  joke  had  been 
perpetrated  frequently  (cuicumque, 
volebat,  dabat};  In  sense  it  is  a 
continuation  of  vss.  28-31,  but  it 
need  not  be  supposed  to  have 
been  uttered  by  the  dives  anticus ; 
rather,  it  is  Horace's  supplement. 

—  dormiet :    i.e.,  will  grow  lazy. 

—  honestum  officium  :  general,  his 
proper  duties.  —  pascet:   i.e..   he 
will  increase  his  debts  and  thus  in- 
crease the  property  of  his  creditor. 

—  Thraex :  a  mere  gladiator,  one 
of  the  last  refuges  of  men  of  fallen 
fortunes.  —  Or    he   will    end   by 
hiring   himself  out   to   drive   the 
horse  of  some  huckster. 


116 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  18,  45 


Thraex  erit  aut  holitoris  aget  mercede  caballum. 
Arcanum  neque  tu  scrutaberis  illius  unquam, 
commissumque  teges  et  vino  tortus  et  ira. 
Nee  tua  laudabis  studia  aut  aliena  reprendes; 

40      nee,  cum  venari  volet  ille,  poemata  panges. 

Gratia  sic  fratrum  geminorum,  Amphionis  atque 
Zethi,  dissiluit  donee  suspecta  severe 
conticuit  lyra.     Fraternis  cessisse  putatur 
moribus  Amphion  :  tu  cede  potentis  amici 

45      lenibus  imperiis,  quotiesque  educet  in  agros 


37.  illius:    'your  patron';    the 
reference  goes  back  over  the  in- 
tervening    story     to    vs.    24    or 
28. 

38.  commissum  teges :  to  reveal 
what  had  been  intrusted  to  one 
in  confidence  is  mentioned  in  Sat. 
1, 3,  95  {prodideritcommissafide) 
as  a  fault  to  be  ranked  with  theft. 
—  vino  tortus:  cf.  A.  P.  ^^tor- 
quere  mero,  queni  perplexisse  labo- 
rant.  —  ira:  i.e.,  because  he  hap- 
pened for  the  moment  to  be  angry 
with  his  patron. 

39-40.  aliena :  in  particular  the 
interests  of  the  patron.  —  venari, 
poemata :  these  two  pursuits  may 
be  selected  merely  for  the  strong 
contrast,  but  they  sound  like  defi- 
nite allusions  to  personal  interests 
of  an  actual  patron  and  of  Lollius 
himself.  Hunting  was  a  favorite 
sport  with  the  Romans  and  is 
often  alluded  to  by  Horace,  and 
many  of  his  younger  friends  like 
Lollius  were  interested  in  litera- 
ture. —  panges :  a  rather  formal 


term,  such  as  Lollius  might  him- 
self use  in  speaking  of  his  wish  to 
stay  at  home  and  devote  himself 
to  the  high  art  of  poetry. 

41-44.  The  debate  between  the 
brothers  Zethus  and  Amphion  in 
regard  to  the  comparative  value 
of  music  —  standing  for  art  in 
general  —  and  the  active  life  of  a 
herdsman  and  hunter  was  in  Eu- 
ripides' Antiope  and  was  repeated 
in  the  Antiopa  of  Pacuvius. 
—  dissiluit :  was  broken.  —  se- 
vero:  the  serious  and  practical 
Zethus.  —  cessisse :  he  is  repre- 
sented in  art  as  in  the  act  of  hiding 
the  lyre  under  his  cloak.  —  puta- 
tur: is  believed;  i.e.,  'if  we  may 
accept  the  story.'  In  fact,  he  be- 
came in  tradition  one  of  the  rep- 
resentatives of  musical  skill,  as 
in  Carm.  3,  n,  2. 

44.  tu :  the  chiastic  arrangement 
emphasizes  the  argument ;  '  all  the 
more  should  you  yield.' 

45.  lenibus :  because  they  came 
from  an  amicus ;  yet  they  are  also 


i,  i8,  46] 


HORATI 


Aetolis  onerata  plagis  iumenta  canesque, 
surge  et  inhumanae  senium  depone  Camenae, 
cenes  ut  pariter  pulmenta  laboribus  empta : 
Romanis  sollemne  viris  opus,  utile  famae 

50     vitaeque  et  membris,  praesertim  cum  valeas  et 
vel  cursu  superare  canem  vel  viribus  aprura 
possis.     Adde  virilia  quod  speciosius  arma 
non  est  qui  tractet.     Scis  quo  clamore  coronae 
proelia  sustineas  campestria;  denique  saevara 

55      militiam  puer  et  Cantabrica  bella  tulisti 

sub  duce,  qui  templis  Parthorum  signa  refigit 


imperils  because  the  friend  is  po- 
tens. 

46.  Aetolis:  the  Scholiast  under- 
stands this  to  be  an  allusion  to  the 
hunting  of  the  Calydonian  boar  in 
Aetolia  by   Meleager;    the  story 
was  a  familiar  one,  and  perhaps 
this  slight  allusion  would  be  suffi- 
ciently clear.     But  it  is  also  quite 
possible  that  there  is  some  other 
meaning  in  the  word. — iumenta: 
cf.  the  description  of  such  a  hunt- 
ing party  in  Epist.  i,  6,  58  ff. 

47 .  inhumanae  :  unfriendly  to  all 
that  would  interrupt  her  pursuits ; 
the   epithet  is  used   by  the  poet 
with  a  certain   humor  and   with 
reference  to  this  particular  occa- 
sion. —  senium :  moroseness,  also 
half  humorous. 

48.  pariter  :     /.*.,    with     your 
friend.  —  pulmenta  . . .  empta:  the 
thought  is  expressed    more   fully 
in  Sat.  2,  2, 9-22,  and  especially  in 
vs.    20,   tu    pulmentaria    quaere 
sudando. 


49.  sollemne  .  .  opus :  in  Sat.  2 
2,  10  f.  hunting  is  called  Romano, 
militia,  in  contrast  to  Greek  ath- 
letics. —  viris :  with  intentional 
emphasis  ;  '  the  manly  Roman.' 

50-51.  The  injunctions  are  at 
the  same  time  lightened  and  made 
more  personal  by  these  compli- 
ments and  by  the  references  to 
Lollius'  early  life. 

52-54.  speciosius :  />., '  you  are 
especially  successful  in  the  sports 
of  the  Campus  Martius  and  win 
the  applause  of  the  surrounding 
spectators  (coronae)1. 

55.  militiam,  Cantabrica  bella  : 
the  general  term  followed  by  the 
specific  reference.    Augustus  made 
campaigns  in  Spain  in  27-25  B.C. ; 
puer  implies  that  this  was  Lollius' 
first  experience  as  a  soldier. 

56.  Parthorum :     with    temphs 
There  are  many  allusions  to  tht 
recovery  of  the  Roman  standards 
taken  from  Crassus. —  refigit  nunc : 
this  gives  the  date  of  the  Epistle 


118 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  18,  64 


mine  et,  si  quid  abest,  I  tails  adiudicat  armis. 
Ac  ne  te  retrahas  et  inexcusabilis  absis, 
quamvis  nil  extra  numerum  fecisse  modumque 
60      curas,  interdum  nugaris  rure  paterno. 
Partitur  lintres  exercitus  ;  Actia  pugna 
te  duce  per  pueros  hostili  more  refertur : 
adversarius  est  f rater,  lacus  Hadria,  donee 
alterutrum  velox  victoria  fronde  coronet. 


as  20  B.C.  The  standards  are 
thought  of  as  having  been  hung  as 
trophies  in  the  Parthian  temples 
and  as  being  taken  down  by 
Augustus  from  the  walls.  In  fact, 
they  were  restored  as  a  result  of 
diplomatic  negotiations. 

57.  si  quid  abest :  /.<?.,  '  if  any- 
thing is  still  outside  the  sphere  of 
Roman  military  power.'  —  adiudi- 
cat :  as  a  judge  who  assigns  to 
the  rightful  owner  that  which  he 
has  claimed.  —  Italis  .  . .  armis  : 
dative  ;  so  Cic.  de  Off.  i,  10,  33  ;  in 
media  reliction  quod  erat  populo 
Romano  adiudicavit.  —  Augustus 
himself  speaks  with  pride  of  his 
extension  of  Roman  influence  into 
the  East  by  diplomacy,  and  it  was 
the  fashion  of  the  time  to  find  in 
these  peaceful  successes  compen- 
sation for  the  defeat  which  the 
Romans  had  suffered  at  the  hands 
of  the  Parthians. 

58-60.  '  And,  to  anticipate  your 
saying  that  a  sport  like  hunting  is 
too  trival  for  one  who  has  been 
a  soldier,  let  me  remind  you, 
though  I  know  that  you  would  do 


nothing  unsuitable,  of  that  sham 
battle  which  you  and  your  brother 
once  exhibited  in  the  country  at 
your  father's  place.'  —  ne  ...  re- 
trahas :  a  parenthetic  clause  of 
purpose ;  cf.  ne  percenter  is,  Epist. 
i,  1 6,  I.  —  inexcusabilis:  without 
good  reason ;  cf.  ignobilis  —  ignotus. 

—  extra    numerum   .  .  .   modum- 
que :      unfitting,     '  unsuitable     to 
your  character  and  position.1    The 
figure  is  taken  from  music.     The 
clause  is  put  in  to  excuse  in  ad- 
vance the  use  of  nugaris. 

61-64.  A  reminiscence  of  a 
mimic  naval  fight,  in  which  the 
two  brothers  had  represented  a 
battle  like  that  of  Actium,  the 
forces  being  slaves  or  boys  of  the 
neighborhood  and  boats  being 
used  for  galleys. — partitur:  the 
game  began  with  a  fair  division  of 
the  skiffs  between  the  two  armies. 

—  hostili  more :  i.e.,  '  as  if  you  had 
really  been   enemies.'  —  lacus:    a 
pond  on  the  estate.  —  Such  repre- 
sentations of  sea  fights  were  often 
given  with  much  splendor  at  public 
shows. 


119 


I,  18,  65] 


HORATI 


65      Consentire  suis  studiis  qui  crediderit  te, 

fautor  utroque  tuum  laudabit  pollice  ludum. 
Protinus  ut  moneam,  si  quid  monitoris  eges  tu, 
quid  de  quoque  viro  et  cui  dicas  saepe  videto. 
Percontatorem  f ugito ;  nam  garrulus  idem  est, 

/o     nee  retinent  patulae  commissa  fideliter  aures, 
et  semel  emissum  volat  irrevocabile  verbum. 
Non  ancilla  tuum  iecur  ulceret  ulla  puerve 
intra  marmoreum  venerandi  limen  amici, 
ne  dominus  pueri  pulchri  caraeve  puellae 

75      munere  te  parvo  beet,  aut  incommodus  angat. 

Qualem  commendes  etiam   atque  etiam  adspice,  ne 
mox 


65-66.  These  vss.  resume  the 
main  thought,  which  was  inter- 
rupted at  vs.  49,  or  at  vs.  58,  by 
the  complimentary  digression  on 
Lollius1  skill  in  games. — utroque 

.  .  pollice :  a  reference,  as  the 
words  fautor  and  ludum  show,  to 
the  gesture  by  which  approval  was 
expressed  in  the  amphitheater. 
The  gesture  had  become  prover- 
bial (Pliny,  Hist.  Nat.  28,  2,  25, 
polities  cum  faveamus  premere 
etiam  proverbio  iubemur) .  Both 
the  origin  and  the  precise  form 
of  the  gesture  are  in  doubt. 

68.  de  quoque  viro :  =  et  de  quo 
viro,  i.e.,  'be  careful  what  you  say 
and  about  whom  and  to  whom.' 

70.  patulae :    the   man   who   is 
percontator,  eager  to  ask  questions, 
will  be   also  eager  to  hear   the 
answers. 

71.  A  familiar  thought,  which 


is  found  in  various  forms ;  cf.  A. 
P.  390,  nescit  vox  missa  reverti. 

72-75.  non  .  .  .  ulceret :  an  ex- 
cellent example  of  non  with  a  sub- 
junctive of  will,  which  should  not 
be  dodged  by  twisting  the  mode 
into  a  potential  or  by  connecting 
non  with  ulla.  Cf.  Sat.  2,  5,  91, 
note.  —  pueri,  puellae :  with  mu- 
nere. —  parvo :  small  in  compari- 
son to  the  benefits  which  might 
have  followed,  if  the  relation  with 
the  patron  had  continued. — beet: 
i.e.,  the  patron,  would  think  the 
gift  a  full  discharge  of  all  obliga- 
tion or  perhaps  would  be  an- 
noyed (angat). 

76.  commendes :  introduce.  — 
The  Romans  made  frequent  use 
of  the  privilege  of  introducing  a 
friend  to  the  attention  of  men  in 
high  position.  Cf.  especially  Epist. 
I,  9. 


120 


EPISTVLAE 


[l,  18,  90 


incutiant  aliena  tibi  peccata  pudorem. 

Fallimur  et  quondam  non  dignum  tradimus ;  ergo 

quern  sua  culpa  premet,  deceptus  omitte  tueri, 

80      ut  penitus  notum,  si  temptent  crimina,  serves, 
tuterisque  tuo  fidentem  praesidio  :  qui 
dente  Theonino  cum  circumroditur,  ecquid 
ad  te  post  paullo  ventura  pericula  sentis  ? 
Nam  tua  res  agitur,  paries  cum  proximus  ardet, 

85      et  neglecta  solent  incendia  sumere  vires. 
Dulcis  inexpertis  cultura  potentis  amici ; 
expertus  metuit.     Tu,  dum  tua  navis  in  alto  est, 
hoc  age,  ne  mutata  retrorsum  te  ferat  aura. 
Oderunt  hilarem  tristes  tristemque  iocosi, 

90     sedatum  celeres,  agilem  navumque  remissi ; 


77.  aliena:   'of  the  other  per- 
son,'     the     friend     thus     intro- 
duced. 

78.  fallimur :  '  it  is  true  that  we 
sometimes  make  mistakes,  in  spite 
of  our  best  care.'  —  ergo :   'since 
this  does  happen,  be  prepared  for 
it.' 

79.  deceptus  :    with   emphasis ; 
'  when  it  is  clear  that  you  have 
made  a  mistake.' 

80.  penitus    notum:    i.e.,    'a 
friend   whom   you  know  so   well 
that  you  cannot  possibly  be  mis- 
taken  in   him ' ;    the   opposite  of 
non  dignum  and  quern  .  .  .  premet. 
—  crimina :     '  unfounded    accusa- 
tions';  cf.  Sat.  i,  3,  60  f.,  cum 
genus  hoc  inter  vitae  versetur,  ubi 
acris    invidia    atque    vigent    ubi 
crimina. 

81.  fidentem:  the  penitus  no- 


tum. —  qui :  connective ;  '  for 
when  he  is  attacked,  do  you  not 
see  that  you  will  likewise  suffer 
in  the  same  way  ? ' 

82.  dente  Theonino:  'by  the 
tooth  of  envy.'  Cf.  Sat.  I,  4,  81, 
absentem  qui  rodit.  But  the  allu- 
sion in  Theonino  is  obscure ;  the 
story  told  by  the  Scholiast  is  quite 
inapplicable. 

86-88.  A  parenthetic  injunction, 
to  enforce  what  has  been  said  and 
to  introduce  the  few  miscellaneous 
warnings  (89-96)  which  follow. 
In  these  Horace  returns  to  the 
thought  with  which  he  began,  the 
danger  of  asperitas  agrestis,  to 
which  Lollius  was  exposed  by  his 
independence  of  temper,  and  warns 
him  against  the  error  of  refusing 
to  conform  to  the  moods  of  his 
patron. 


121 


1, 18,91] 


HORAT1 


100 


[potores  bibuli  media  de  nocte  Falerni] 
oderunt  porrecta  negantem  pocula,  quamvis 
nocturnes  iures  te  formidare  tepores. 
Deme  supercilio  nubem ;  plerumque  modestus 
occupat  obscuri  speciem,  taciturnus  acerbi. 
Inter  cuncta  leges  et  percontabere  doctos, 
qua  ratione  queas  traducere  leniter  aevum ; 
num  te  semper  inops  agitet  vexetque  cupido, 
num  pavor  et  rerum  mediocriter  utilium  spes; 
virtutem  doctrina  paret  naturane  donet ; 
quid  minuat  curas,  quid  te  tibi  reddat  amicum  ; 
quid  pure  tranquillet,  honos,  an  dulce  lucellum, 
an  secretum  iter  et  fallentis  semita  vitae. 
Me  quotiens  reficit  gelidus  Digentia  rivus, 


gx.  This  verse  is  not  found  in 
good  Mss.  It  was  made  up  out  of 
Epist.  i,  14,  34,  quern  bibulum 
liquidi  media  de  luce  Falerni,  to 
supply  a  subject  for  oderunt  in  the 
next  line. 

92-93.  oderunt :  the  subject  is 
implied  in  porrecta.  —  quamvis  : 
i.e., '  however  good  the  excuse  you 
may  offer  for  your  refusal.'  —  te- 
pores :  the  heating  effect  of  wine. 

94-95.  nubem :  the  figure  is  still 
in  use,  though  with  reference  to 
the  forehead  rather  than  to  the 
eyebrow  alone.  The  thought  is 
more  fully  explained  in  the  follow- 
ing sentence,  to  which  deme  .  .  . 
nubem  is  an  introduction. — ple- 
rumque :  often,  not '  generally,  usu- 
ally.' —  occupat :  cf.  Carm.  4,  9, 
46  f.,  rectius  occupat  nomen  beati. 
—  obscuri :  secretive.  —  acerbi : 


the  reserve  of  a  taciturn  man 
may  easily  be  mistaken  for  dis- 
approval. 

96.  inter  cuncta :  i.e.,  '  amid 
all  the  chances  and  changes  of 
life.'  —  ISges :  not  leges.  —  doctos : 
the  wise,  the  philosophers. 

99.  mediocriter:  with  utilium. 

100.  This   question   was   often 
debated  in  philosophy. 

102.  dulce :  ironical. 

103.  fallentis  semita  vitae:    cf. 
Epist.  I,   17,   10,  qui  natus  mori- 
ensque  fefellit . 

104-112.  '  For  myself,  I  have 
known  such  a  life  as  you  are  liv- 
ing and  have  now  entered  upon 
the  path  of  a  quiet  life.'  —  Digentia : 
the  stream  which  flowed  through 
his  valley,  Epist.  \,  1 6,  12 —  Man- 
dela :  a  village  near  the  farm,  the 
inhabitants  of  which  drew  their 


122 


EPISTVLAE  [i,  i8,ua 

105     quern  Mandela  bibit,  rugosus  frigore  pagus, 
quid  sentire  putas,  quid  credis,  amice,  precari? 
Sit  mihi  quod  nunc  est,  etiam  minus,  et  mini  vivam 
quod  superest  aevi,  si  quid  superesse  volunt  di. 
Sit  bona  librorum  et  provisae  frugis  in  annum 

no     copia,  neu  fluitem  dubiae  spe  pendulus  horae. 
Sed  satis  est  orare  lovem  quae  donat  et  aufert ; 
det  vitam,  det  opes,  aequum  mi  animum  ipse  parabo. 

water  from  the  Digentia.  —  ru-  'be  tossed  about  like  a  leaf.'  The 
gosus  :  i.e.,  in  winter.  —  sit  mihi:  thought  is  repeated  in  aequum 
cf.  the  prayer  of  Car m.  I,  31,  17  ff.  animum.  —  sed  satis  est:  i.e., 

'  Frui  paratis  et  valido  mihi,  'but   l   nue.e?   W  °nly  for  those 

Latoe,  dones  ac  precor  Integra  thmSs  whlch  l  cannot  secure  my 

Cum  mente,  nee  turpem  senectam  self'  for  ™tam  (=  ro?-108)  and 

Degere  nee  cithara  carentem.'  opes  (vs.    109)  ;  the  spirit  of  the 

philosopher    I    will    myself    pro- 

—  mihi  vivam:  i.e.,  'live  my  own  vide.' 
quiet  life.' — fluitem  .  .  .  pendulus: 

V 
19 

This  Epistle  was  written  just  before  the  publication  of  the  collection, 
in  the  year  20  B.C.  It  is  fitly  addressed,  like  Epist.  I,  i,  to  Maecenas, 
as  the  most  cordial  and  intimate  of  the  poet's  friends  and  admirers. 

'  There  is  an  old  idea  that  poets  should  drink  wine.  Cratinus  held 
this,  and  Homer  and  Ennius,  too,  and  I  once  laid  down  the  same  doc- 
trine. Since  then  my  contemporaries  have  reeked  of  wine,  as  if  one 
could  become  a  Cato  by  wearing  a  toga  like  his.  Imitation  of  eccen- 
tricities is  not  very  laudable,  nor,  in  fact,  is  any  kind  of  imitation. 
From  that  fault  I  have  kept  myself  free.  Archilochus  was  my  leader  in 
the  Epodes,  but  I  followed  him  exactly  as  Alcaeus  and  Sappho  did, 
learning  from  him  the  lyric  art,  but  using  it  for  other  purposes  than 
his.  So  also  I  followed  Alcaeus  and  Sappho  in  turn  in  the  Odes,  and 
I  claim  with  pride,  as  I  said  at  the  time  when  the  Odes  were  published, 
to  have  been  the  first  of  Romans  to  carry  on  the  tradition  of  the  lyric 
poetry  of  Lesbos. 

'If  you  ask  why  my  poetry  has  not  won  greater  applause,  I  can  easily 
answer  the  question  ;  it  is  because  I  have  not  sought  for  the  favor  of 

123 


I,  19,  i]  HORATI 

critics  and  cliques.  And  when  I  say  that  I  cannot  venture  to  submit 
my  trifles  to  their  learned  judgment,  they  accuse  me  of  laughing  at 
them.  The  result  is  that  I  don't  dare  to  show  any  contempt  at  all ;  I 
back  out  of  the  contest ;  they  might  be  the  death  of  me,  if  they  knew 
what  I  really  think  of  them.' 

Under  the  form  of  an  Epistle  to  Maecenas  Horace  is  here  defending 
his  Odes  against  the  critics,  as  in  his  earlier  career  he  had  defended 
himself  in  Sat.  1,4  and  Sat.  I,  10  and  had  made  sport  of  his  detractors 
in  Sat.  2,  I.  Of  the  occasion  for  such  replies  we  know  little  except  by 
inference.  Vergil,  highly  as  he  was  honored  duiing  his  lifetime,  was 
also  severly  criticized,  so  that  his  friends  felt  called  upon  to  defend  him. 
That  Horace  should  have  been  the  object  of  similar  attacks,  made  all 
the  more  bitter  by  his  intimacy  with  Maecenas,  is  altogether  natural. 
With  respect  to  the  Odes,  published  in  23  B.C.,  the  criticism  took  the 
form  of  a  charge  of  lack  of  originality.  To  this  Horace  replies,  first  by 
a  kind  of  definition  of  servile  imitation,  and  then  by  a  statement  of  his 
real  relation  to  the  Greek  lyric  poets.  He  stood,  he  says,  in  precisely 
the  same  relation  to  Alcaeus  and  Sappho  in  which  they  stood  to  Archilo- 
chus ;  he  was  an  artist  of  the  same  school,  not  an  imitator.  This  is, 
of  course,  the  true  explanation  of  the  relation  of  any  poet  or  artist  to 
his  predecessors ;  a  proper  understanding  of  it  would  have  saved 
modern  critics  from  repeating  the  statement  that  Latin  literature  is 
imitative. 

Frisco  si  credis,  Maecenas  docte,  Cratino, 
nulla  placere  diu  nee  vivere  carmina  possunt 
quae  scribuntur  aquae  potoribus.     Vt  male  sanos 

i.    prisco  .  .  .  Cratino:  one  of  2-3.    This  precise  sentiment  is 

the  poets  of  the  Old  Comedy  men-  not  found  in  any  of  the  fragments 

tioned  in  Sat.  i,  4,  i.     The  adj.  of  the   plays   of  Cratinus.     It  is, 

prisons  is  used  because  it  was  the  however,  merely  a  lively  expression 

technical  rhetorical  term   for  the  of  the  praise  of  wine  which  is  fre- 

prisca  comoedia.     Cratinus'  fond-  quent  in  all  literature ;  cf.  Carm. 

ness  for  wine  was  frequently  re-  i,  18,  3,  siccis  omnia  nam  dura 

ferred  to  and  had  become  tradi-  deus  proposuit.  —  diu  :    with  pla- 

tional. — docte:  so   of  Maecenas,  cere,  not  with  vivere,  which  con- 

Cartn.  3,  8,  5,  docte  sermones  utri-  tains  the  idea  in  itself. 

usque  linguae ;   his   acquaintance  3.    ut:    since. — male   sanos  :  = 

with  literature  would  have  made  the  insanos.  i.e.,  inspired  by  the  Muses, 

sayings  of  Cratinus  familiar  to  him.  But  Horace  always  uses  this  adj 

124 


EPISTVLAE 


[it  19. 


10 


adscripsit  Liber  Satyris  Faunisque  poetas, 
vina  fere  dulces  oluerunt  mane  Camenae. 
Laudibus  arguitur  vini  vinosus  Homerus; 
Ennius  ipse  pater  nunquam  nisi  potus  ad  arma 
prosiluit  dicenda.     *  Forum  putealque  Libonis 
mandabo  siccis,  adimam  cantare  sevens': 
hoc  simul  edixi  non  cessavere  poetae 
nocturne  certare  mero,  putere  diurno. 
Quid  si  quis  vultu  torvo  ferus  et  pede  nudo 


of  poets  with  a  humorous  or  scorn- 
ful tone ;  cf.  Sat.  2,  3,  322 ;  Sat. 
2,  7,  117,  aut  insanit  homo  aut 
•versus  facit. 

4.  adscripsit . . .  Satyris :  'added 
them  to  the  list,1  '  enrolled  them 
with  his  satyrs.'     This  is  not  a 
reference   to  some  definite  myth, 
but  only  a  humorous  way  of  saying 
4  from  the  beginnings  of  poetry.' 

5.  fere:  usually.  —  mane:  'the 
next  morning,'  '  the  morning  after,' 
from    the    fumes    of   the   night's 
drinking. 

6.  laudibus:  they  are  merely  the 
traditional  praises,  a  line  here  and 
there.  —  vinosus :     predicate ;    '  is 
accused  of  being.' 

7.  Ennius :    there   was  a  tradi- 
tion that  he  had  gout,  based  per- 
haps upon  a  line  from  one  of  his 
saturae  (numquam  poetor  nisi  si 
podager)  the  form  of  which  seems 
to  have  been  in  Horace's  mind. 

8.  prosiluit :  he  sprang  forward 
like    one    of  the    fighters  he  de- 
scribed. —  puteal  Libonis :  a  spot 
in    the    Forum   which   had  been 


struck  by  lightning  and  therefore, 
as  sacred,  surrounded  by  a  low 
wall.  It  is  said  by  the  Scholiast  to 
have  been  the  place  where  the 
praetor  held  court.  The  sense 
would  then  be,  '  business  and  pub- 
lic affairs  I  will  leave  to  water 
drinkers.' 

9.  cantare:  i.e.,  'poetry.'  —  sc- 
veris :  the  same  as  siccis. 

lo-n.  edixi:  a  formal  word 
used  of  the  edict  of  the  praetor.  — 
putere :  the  expected  verb  would 
be  certare,  but  putere  is  substituted 
ironically.  —  The  sentence  con- 
tinues the  previous  course  of 
thought ;  '  Cratinus  taught  that 
poets  should  be  drinkers ;  so,  it  is 
snid,  did  Homer  and  Ennius,  and 
when  Bacchus  enrolled  poets 
among  his  followers,  the  very 
Muses  took  to  hard  drinking.  Now 
it  is  my  turn ;  when  I  sang  the 
praises  of  wine,  my  fellow-poets 
began  to  sit  up  all  night  over  the 
bottle.' 

12-14.  'But  bare  feet  and  a 
scanty  toga  do  not  maice  a  Cato.' 


125 


i.  '9,  13] 


20 


exiguaeque  togae  simulet  textore  Catonem, 
virtutemne  repraesentet  moresque  Catonis  ? 
Rupit  larbitam  Timagenis  aemula  lingua, 
dum  studet  urbanus  tenditque  disertus  haberi. 
Decipit  exemplar  vitiis  imitabile  :  quodsi 
pallerem  casu,  biberent  exsangue  cuminum. 
O  imitatores,  servum  pecus,  ut  mihi  saepe 
bilem  saepe  iocum  vestri  movere  tumultus  ! 
Libera  per  vacuum  posui  vestigia  princeps, 


—  pede  nudo :   in  imitation  of  the 
strict   fashion  of  the   older  time. 

—  exiguae  :  cf.artatoga,  Epist.  i, 
18,  30.  —textore  :  abl.  of  means; 
'  by  the  help  of  a  weaver  of  a  scanty 
toga.'  —  repraesentet:   not  exactly 
with    the   meaning   of  the   corre- 
sponding English  word,  but '  bring 
before  us,1  '  show  us  in  his  own 
person.1 

15-16.  Th  e  poi  nt  of  the  allusion 
is  that  larbitas  tried  to  rival  Tima- 
genes  in  rhetorical  skill,  but  suc- 
ceeded only  in  imitating  his  fault 
of  bitterness.  This  is  the  same  as 
the  point  of  vss.  12-14,  that  one 
cannot  acquire  the  character  of 
Cato  by  imitating  his  eccentrici- 
ties, and  the  two  illustrations  are 
summed  up  in  vs.  17.  Timagenes 
was  a  Greek  rhetorician  of  consid- 
erable ability  (iirbanus,  disertus), 
who  fell  into  disgrace  because  of 
the  bitterness  of  his  wit.  larbitas 
is  perhaps  the  nickname  of  a  cer- 
tain Cordus,  who  may  be  the  Co- 
drus  referred  to  by  Vergil,  Ed.  7, 
26,  invidia  rurnpantur  ut  ilia 


.Codro.  But  the  allusion  must  re- 
main obscure  in  its  details,  though 
the  general  sense  is  clear.  —  rupit : 
a  reference  to  the  fable  of  the  Ox 
and  the  Frog,  to  which  Horace 
alludes  also  in  Sat.  2,  3,  314  ff. 
The  Scholiast,  however,  takes  it 
literally.  —  Timagenis :  gen.  after 
aemula.  — lingua :  i.e., '  the  tongue 
of  larbitas  was  his  ruin.' 

17.  decipit :  the  emphatic  word ; 
'  we  make  a  mistake  when  we  fol- 
low an  example  by  a  mere  imitation 
of  faults  and  eccentricities,  as  when 
we  suppose  that  we  must  be  hard 
drinkers  in  order  to  be  poets.1  — 
vitiis :  with  imitabile. 

1 8.  casu:    by  mere  chance]   it 
would  have  no  meaning,  any  more 
than  Cato's  toga  had.  —  exsangue  : 
'  to  produce  paleness.' 

19.  imitatores :     primarily    the 
men   who   imitated    Horace  him- 
self, but  also  in  a  general  sense. 
—  servum :  the  adjective. 

21.  libera,  per  vacuum,  prin- 
ceps :  an  emphatic  assertion  of 
his  own  freedom  from  slavish  imi- 


126 


EPISTVLAE 


[«•  19.  29 


non  aliena  meo  press!  pede.     Qui  sibi  fidet, 
dux  reget  examen.     Parios  ego  primus  iambos 
ostendi  Latio,  numeros  animosque  secutus 
35      Archilochi,  non  res  et  agentia  verba  Lycamben. 
Ac  ne  me  foliis  ideo  brevioribus  ornes 
quod  timui  mutare  modos  et  carminis  artem, 
temperat  Archilochi  Musam  pede  mascula  Sappho, 
temperat  Alcaeus,  sed  rebus  et  ordine  dispar, 


tation,  which  is  explained  in  the 
following  verses,  down  to  31. 

23.  dux  reget :  i.e., l  will  be  the 
leader  of  the  swarm,  like  a  queen 
bee.'  —  Parios  .  .  .  iambos:  'such 
iambic  measures  as  were  used  by 
Archilochus  of  Paros.'  This  re- 
fers to  the  Epodes,  that  is,  to 
couplets  of  iambic  measure  used 
for  satirical  purposes ;  both  form 
and  spirit  (numeros  animosque) 
are  included  in  this  technical  use 
of  the  word  iambi.  Iambic  sena- 
rius  is  the  ordinary  verse  of  Latin 
comedy  and  is  of  course  not  meant 
here. 

25.  non  res:  i.e.,  'but  the  form 
and  spirit  were  employed  upon  a 
wholly  different  subject-matter.' 
—  agentia  verba  Lycamben :  it  is 
the  tradition  that  Lycambes  was 
attacked  by  Archilochus  with  so 
much  bitterness  that  he  hanged 
himself.  The  phrase  must  be 
taken  as  a  whole ;  Horace  means 
that  he  did  not  imitate  the  savage- 
ness  of  Archilochus1  language. 

27.  modos  et  .  .  .  artem:  the 
same  as  numeros  animosque,  vs.  24. 


28.  temperat :  in  the  rhetorical 
sense,  of  regulating  and  shaping 
the  rhythm  of  verse  or  prose.  — 
Archilochi :    with  pede ;   '  by  the 
measures  of  Archilochus.'  —  mas- 
cula :  i.e.,  not  a  weak  woman,  but 
the  equal  of  men  in  poetry. 

29.  Alcaeus :  compare  the  noble 
tribute  to  Alcaeus  and  Sappho  in 
Carm.  2,  13,  24-36.  —  ordine:  in 
the  arrangement  of  different  lines 
to  form  a  strophe,  like  the  Alcaic 
or  Sapphic.    In  general  the  thought 
here  repeats  the  thought  of  vss. 
24-25  ;    temperat  is  the  same  as 
secutus,  pede  repeats  numeros,  re- 
bus corresponds  to  res,  and  vss. 
30-31   expand  agentia  verba  Ly- 
camben.    This    makes     complete 
the  parallel  between  Horace  and 
the  two  Greek  lyric  poets ;  he  has 
done   exactly   what    Alcaeus  and 
Sappho  did.     To  this  parallelism 
he   makes   a  slight   exception   in 
ordine,  because  he  recognizes  fully 
in  the  Odes  the  claim  of  Alcaeus 
and  Sappho  to  be  considered  the 
originators   of  the    two   strophes 
which  bear  their  names. 


127 


HORATI 


30      nec  socerum  quaerit  quern  versibus  oblinat  atris, 
nee  sponsae  laqueum  famoso  carmine  nectit. 
Hunc  ego  non  alio  dictum  prius  ore  Latinus 
vulgavi  fidicen  ;  iuvat  immemorata  ferentem 
ingenuis  oculisque  legi  manibusque  teneri. 

35      Scire  velis  mea  cur  ingratus  opuscula  lector 

laudet  ametque  domi,  premat  extra  limen  iniquus  ? 
Non  ego  ventosae  plebis  suffragia  venor 
impensis  cenarum  et  tritae  munere  vestis  ; 
non  ego,  nobilium  scriptorum  auditor  et  ultor, 

40      grammaticas  ambire  tribus  et  pulpita  dignor. 


30.  socerum :    Archilochus   had 
desired  to  marry  the  daughter  of 
Lycambes. 

31.  sponsae:  used  like  socerum, 
of  the  relation  which  Archilochus 
desired.     The  tradition  is  that  she 
also  hanged  herself  inconsequence 
of  the   bitterness   of  the  attacks 
upon   her  father   and    herself.  — 
famoso :  so  famosis  versibus,  Sat. 
2,  i,  68,  of  the  satires  of  Lucilius. 

32.  hunc :  Alcaeus,  the  last  re- 
ferred to.  —  non  alio  . . .  ore  :  the 
Alcaic  strophe  had  not  been  used 
before  in  Latin  poetry.     This  re- 
peats the  claim  made  in  the  epi- 
logue to  the  Odes,  Carm.  3,  30, 
13  f.,  princeps  Aeolinm  carmen  ad 
Jtalos  deduxisse  modos. 

33.  iuvat :  i.e.,  '  I  feel  pride  in 
what  I  have  done  and  in  the  class 
of  readers  to  whom  I   appeal.' — 
immemorata  :  '  things  hitherto  un- 
uttered ' ;    this  is  the  early  sense 
of  memorare*  '  to  tell,  to  utter.1 

34.  ingenuis :     in    contrast    to 


servum  pecus,  vs.  19.  Horace 
frequently  expresses  his  pleasure 
at  being  recognized  by  competent 
judges,  e.g.,  Sat.  i,  10,  72  ff. ;  2, 
i,  74  ff. 

35.  opuscula  :  this  must  refer  to 
the  Odes. 

36.  premat .  .  .  iniquus  :    to  be 
taken  together ;    '  is  unjustly  crit- 
ical.' 

37-38.  ventosae  :  d.Epist.  i,  8, 
12,  where  Horace  uses  the  word 
of  himself.  The  belief  that  de- 
mocracies were  fickle  is  a  very  old 
one  and  is  still  held  by  some  per- 
sons, in  spite  of  the  facts.  —  suf- 
fragia :  a  condensed  comparison  ; 
'  I  am  not  like  an  office  seeker, 
who  hunts  for  votes.'  The  thought 
is  then  repeated  in  plainer  words, 
though  still  with  some  figurative 
expressions,  in  vss.  39-40.  —  im- 
pensis . . .  munere :  ordinary  means 
of  indirect  bribery. 

39-40.  '  I  do  not  try  to  win  the 
favor  of  other  poets  by  an  inter- 


128 


EPISTVLAE 


19,47 


45 


Hinc  illae  lacrimae.     '  Spissis  indigna  thcatris 

scripta  pudet  recitare  et  nugis  addere  pondus,' 

si  dixi,  '  Rides,'  ait,  '  et  lovis  auribus  ista 

servas  ;  fidis  enim  manare  poetica  mella 

te  solum,  tibi  pitcher.'     Ad  haec  ego  naribus  uti 

formido,  et  luctantis  acuto  ne  secer  ungui, 

4  Displicet  iste  locus,'  clamo,  et  diludia  posco. 


change  of  compliments.'  —  nobi- 
lium :  ironical,  as  in  par  nobile 
fratrum,  Sat.  2,  3,  243 ;  '  writers 
who  think  themselves  famous.'  — 
auditor  et  ultor  :  />.,  '  by  listening 
to  their  readings  from  their  works 
and  by  reading  mine  to  them  for 
their  approval.'  The  best  parallel 
to  this  is  Juv.  I,  I,  semper  ego 
auditor  tantum  ?  numquamne  re- 
ponam  .  .  .  ?  The  custom  of  giv- 
ing readings,  which  had  already 
become  wearisome,  tended  to  form 
mutual  admiration  societies,  and 
the  attendance  at  such  readings 
was  therefore  a  kind  of  bribe  to 
win  approval  for  one's  own  writ- 
ings. Ultor  is  intentionally  substi- 
tuted for  some  word  like  recitator, 
to  make  the  irony  plainer.  —  tribus : 
this  recurs  to  the  figure  of  37-38. 
—  pulpita :  the  platforms  from 
which  the  critics  lectured. 

41.  hinc  illae  lacrimae:  this 
phrase  was  first  used  in  Latin  lit- 
erature by  Terence  (Andr.  125  f.) 
and  had  become  proverbial,  as  it 
has  in  English,  always  with  an 
ironical  tone.  —  spissis  .  .  .  thea- 
tris  :  the  halls  where  public  read- 
ings were  given,  which  were 


crowded  with  poets  and  literary 
critics.  There  is  no  reference  to 
the  performance  of  plays.  —  in- 
digna :  this  is  said  with  pretended 
modesty,  like  opuscula,  vs.  35,  and 
nugis  in  the  next  line. 

42.  addere  pondus  :  i.e.,  to  treat 
them    as    if    they   were    weighty 
utterances. 

43.  rides:     you    are    ironical; 
/.<?.,  '  my  critic  seems  to  find  my 
humility    merely   affected,'   as   of 
course   it  was.     From  this  point 
to  the  end  the  tone  is  wholly  one 
of  scornful  and  open  irony,  as  in 
the  close  of  Sat.  I,  10.  —  lovis: 
Augustus,  as  the  supreme  repre- 
sentative  of  the   inner  circle   of 
cultivated  readers. 

44.  fidis  :   '  for  you  feel  a  con- 
ceited   confidence   in   the  quality 
of  your  poetry.'  —  mella :   a  cog- 
nate accus.  after  manare. 

45.  naribus  uti:    cf.   naso  sus- 
pendis  adunco,Sat.  1 , 6, 5,  and  note. 

46.  formido :    entirely   ironical, 
since   he   is   at   this  moment  ex- 
pressing his  scorn   (naribus  uti) 
in  the  very  act  of  pretending  to 
conceal  it. 

47.  displicet  ist?  locus  :  the  cry 


HOR.  EP.  —  9 


129 


j,  19,  48]  IIORATI 

Ludus  enim  genuit  trepidum  certamen  et  iram, 
ira  truces  inimicitias  et  funebre  bellum. 


of  a  contestant,  a  wrestler  or  gladi-  course,    with    irony.     Cf.   Thack- 

ator,  who  thinks  that  his  opponent  eray,  '  The  Rose  and  the  Ring,1 

has  an  unfair  advantage  in  posi- 

•    j       i       .1        r         j  j  '  Critics  serve  us  authors  thus: 

tion  and  who  therefore  demands  . 

Sport  to  them  is  death  to  us. 
a  pause  (diludia)  to  equalize  the 

conditions.     The  reference  to  the  —  ludus  :   with  reference  to  dilu- 

pulpita,  40,  and  theatris  is  sec-  dia.  —  The  adjectives  are   inten- 

ondary.  tionally     extravagant,     trepidum, 

48-49.    '  For   the  consequences  truces,  funebre,  carrying  out  the 

may  be  most  serious ' ;    still,  of  irony  oiformido. 


An  Epilogue  to  the  collection  of  Epistles,  written  in  the  year  20,  after 
the  other  poems  were  collected  for  publication. 

'  You  are  eager  to  see  the  world,  my  book,  like  a  young  slave  who 
seeks  to  escape  from  the  house  of  a  good  master.  Go,  then,  and  meet 
your  fate ;  you  will,  I  think,  have  some  readers,  but  I  do  not  predict  for 
you  an  immortality  of  favor. 

'  While  the  favor  lasts,  tell  your  readers  what  I  am,  a  freedman's  son 
who  feels  himself  now  coming  to  middle  age.' 

This  poem  is,  on  the  one  side,  an  expression  of  the  writer's  hopes 
and  fears,  as  he  sends  a  new  book  out  into  the  world.  It  is  done,  as 
one  would  expect  from  Horace,  without  flourish  of  trumpets ;  he  is 
quite  aware  of  the  fact  that  the  book  has  merits,  but  he  knows  also  that 
it  is  not  the  greatest  book  that  was  ever  written.  On  this  side  the 
poem  might  be  compared  with  Catullus's  address  to  his  new  book,  with 
Ovid's  Tristia  I,  i  and  Martial,  I,  3.  On  the  other  side,  this  epistle  is 
like  the  biographies  which  were  often  appended  to  standard  editions, 
much  as  the  Vita  by  Suetonius  is  preserved  in  the  Mss.  of  Horace's 
complete  works.  The  brief  '  Life '  of  the  author  gives  his  birth  and 
origin  (20),  his  rise  in  life  (21-23),  h'5  appearance  and  character 
(24-25),  and  his  age  (26-28),  as  such  things  are  given  in  biographies 
of  the  standard  form.  Propertius  (i,  22)  and  Ovid  (Amor.  3,  15)  have 
followed  the  same  custom. 

130 


EPISTVLAE 


[l,  20,   10 


Ok/tA^?L  Vertumnum  lanumcjue,  liber,  spectare  videris, 

\  >  scilicet  ut  prostes  Sosiorum  punjice^mundus.^^^'^^ 

sti  clavis  et  grata  sigilla  pudico  ; 
paucis  ostendi  gemis  et  communia  laudas, 
non  ita  nutritus.     Fuge  quo  descendere  gestis. 
Non  erit  emisso  reditus  tibi.     '  Quid  miser  egi? 
quid  volui  ? '  dices,  ubi  quis  te  laeserit,  et  scis 
in  breve  te  cogi,  cum  plenus  languet  amator. 
Quodsi  non  odio  peccantis  desipit  augur, 
carus  eris  Romae  donee  te  deseret  aetas ; 


1.  Vertumnum:  a  shrineoFthis 
god  was  in  the  Vicus   Tuscus,  a 
street    leading    down     from    the 
Forum    toward    the   river;    there 
were  booksellers'  shops  along  this 
street.  —  lanum:    this   may   have 
been  an  archway  over  the  Vicus 
Tuscus  or  one  of  the  arches  in  the 
Forum;  cf.  Epist.  i,  i,  54.     The 
two    names   together  stand  for  a 
quarter  of  the  city  where  books 
were  sold  and  where  also,  carry- 
ing out  the  double  meaning  of  the 
Epistle,  there  were  houses  of  ill- 
repute. 

2.  scilicet  ut:  cf.  Epist.  i,  9, 
3,    note. — prostes:    in   a   double 
sense ;     cf.     prostibulum,     of    a 
harlot.  —  Sosii :      a     well-known 
firm    of    booksellers,    mentioned 
also     in     A.  P.     345.  — pumice: 
used  to  smooth  the  end   of  the 
papyrus  roll;   cf.   Catull.    i,    1-2, 
.  .  .  libellum    arido  .  .  .  pumice 
erpolitum. 

4.    gemis:  i.e.,  'you  are  dissat- 
isfied with  the  admiration  of  my 


friends    and  wish   for   more    ad- 
mirers.' 

5.  fuge :  i.e.,  '  go  quickly  then," 
since  you  will  have  your  way.'  — 
descendere :    the  regular  word  for 
going    down   from   the   residence 
quarters,  on  the  hills,  to  the  Fo- 
rum, with  a  secondary  reference  to 
the  descent  in  life  of  the  runaway 
slave. 

6.  emisso :     primarily    of    the 
slave,  but  also  of  the  book ;    cf. 
Epist.  i,  1 8,  71,  et  semel  emissum 
volat  irrevocabile  verbtim. 

7-8.  scis :  =  sentis ;  the  primary 
reference  is  to  the  book,  rolled  up 
(in  breve  .  .  .  cogi)  and  laid  aside ; 
with  reference  to  the  slave  it 
means  '  driven  to  poverty  and 
hardship.'  —  languet  amator :  here 
the  slave  is  chiefly  in  mind,  yet  the 
phrase  may  be  used  also  of  the 
tired  reader. 

10.  aetas :  youth,  the  flower  of 
youth ;  so  often  of  boys  and  girls. 
From  this  point  the  comparison 
of  the  book  to  the  young  slave  is 


1,20,  II] 


HORATI 


contrectatus  ubi  manibus  sordesere  vulgi 
coeperis,  aut  tineas  pasces  taciturnus  inert! 
aut  fugies  Vticam  aut  vinctusjrritteris  Ilerdam. 
Ridebit  monitor  non  exauditus,  ut  ilfe/^v 

are9tem  in  rupes  protrusit  asellum 
iratus  :  quis  enim  invitum  servare  laboret  ? 

quoque  te  manet,  ut  pueros  elementa  doce 
ocg,upet  extremis  in  vicis  balba,  senectus, 

um  tibi  sol  tepidus  plures  admoverit  auris, 
me  libertino  natum  patre  et  in  tenui  re 
maiores  pennas  nido  extendisse  loqueris, 
ut  quantum  generi  demas,  virtutibus  addas  ; 


em 


t  A  less  prominent,  though  occasional 
V\  words  show  that  the  figure  is  not 
forgotten. 

ii.  contrectatus  .  .  .  manibus: 
the  buyer  could  take  up  the  book 
and  look  at  it  as  in  a  modern  book- 
'  ^  .^hop ;  cf.  Sat.  I,  4,  72,  libellos  quis 
x-W*"'^ tnanus  insudet  volgi. 

12-13.    taciturnus:     this    word 

A  fugies  are  selected  for  their  sug- 
gestion of  the  slave,  though  the  rest 
of  the  phrase  is  applicable  only  to 
the  book.  —  Vticam,  Ilerdam:  in 
Africa  and  in  Spain ;  they  are  se- 
lected as  types  of  provincial  towns, 
where  books  no  longer  salable  in 
Rome  might  find  purchasers. 

14-16.  monitor:  Horace;  cf. 
augur,  vs.  9.  —  protrusit:  since 
he  could  not  keep  the  ass  from  the 
cliff,  he  gave  up  the  effort  and 
pushed  him  over. — iratus:  cf. 
odio  peccantis,  vs.  9. 

17.  elementa:  i.e.,  used  as  a 
text-book  for  children  who  are 


learning  to  read  and  are  too  young 
to  be  interested  in  the  sense.  — 
docentem :  sc.  te. 

19.  sol  tepidus  :  'the  warm  sun- 
shine   of     popular     favor ' ;     i.e., 
'when  you  are  still  fresh  enough 
to   have   many  readers.1     [There 
are  many  varying  explanations  of 
this  rather  ambiguous  phrase,  but 
tepeo,  tepor,  tepidus  in  Horace  al- 
ways mean  warmth  in  contrast  to 
cold,  except  in  Sat.  1,3,  81,  never 
warmth  in  contrast  to  heat.    That 
in  connection  with  sol  it  should 
mean  anything  but '  warm '  is  quite 
impossible.] 

20.  libertino  natum  patre :   so 
libertino  patre  natum,  Sat.  i ,  6,  6 ; 
45  ;  46,  with  emphatic  repetition. 
—  in  tenui  re:    cf.  Sat.   i,  6,  71, 
macro  pauper  agello,  of  his  father. 

22.  generi :  birth.  The  reason 
given  in  this  line  is  one  which 
could  not  have  been  expressed  in 
Sat.  i,  6,  before  he  felt  that  his 


132 


EPISTVLAE 


[i,  20,  28 


me  primis  urbis  belli  placuisse  domique ; 
corporis  exigui,  praecanum,  solibus  aptum, 
25      irasci  celerem,  tamen  ut  placabilis  essem. 
Forte  meum  si  quis  te  percontabitur  aevum, 
me  quater  undenos  sciat  implevisse  Decembris, 
collegam  Lepidum  quo  duxit  Lollius  anno. 


position  was  secure,  though  it  was 
doubtless  even  then  in  his  mind. 

23.  belli  .  .  .  domique :      with 
primis,   not  with  placuisse.     Cf., 
in  general,  Sat.  2,  i,  76,  Epist.  I, 

!7,  35- 

24.  corporis   exigui :    short   of 
stature,  as  is  said  in  the  Vita  of 
Suetonius;    'habita   corporis   fuit 
brevis     atque     obesus.'  —  praeca- 
num :  gray  before  my  time,  as  he 
was  only  forty-four  years  old.  — 
solibus  aptum :  the  Romans  made 
less  use  than  we  of  artificial  heat- 
ing and  so  arranged  their  porti- 
coes as  to  have  convenient  places 
sheltered  from  the  wind  and  open 
to  the  winter  sun.     Many  passages 


show   that    Horace   disliked   cold 
weather. 

25.  irasci  celerem:  the  vitium 
irae  is  one  to  which  Horace  fre- 
quently refers  in  such  a  way  as  to 
acknowledge  his  own  proneness 
to  it. 

27.  Decembris :    the  month    in 
which  his  birthday  came. 

28.  The    year    21    B.C.      The 
peculiar  word  dunit   is   used  be- 
cause Lollius  was  at  first  consul 
alone  and  '  brought  in  '  Lepidus  as 
his  colleague  only  after  long  delay. 
The    birthday    named    would    of 
course  be  the  last  one  preceding 
the  time  of  writing,  which  was  in 
the  summer  or  autumn  of  20  B.C. 


'33 


LIBER  SECVNDVS 


The  date  of  this  Epistle  can  be  determined  with  a  fair  degree  of  pre- 
cision. It  is  probable  that  Horace  wrote  it,  in  accordance  with  the 
custom  which  he  had  followed  in  publishing  other  collections  of  poems, 
after  the  other  Epistles,  2  and  3  (the  Ars  Poetica),  to  serve  as  an  intro- 
duction and  to  dedicate  the  whole  collection  to  the  person  addressed  in 
this  letter.  This  general  probability  is  supported  by  a  passage  in  the 
Vita  of  Suetonius  :  '  post  sermones  vero  quosdam  lectos  nullam  sui 
mentionem  habitam  ita  sit  questus :  "  irasci  me  tibi  scito,  quod  non  in 
plerisque  eius  modi  scriptis  mecum  potissimum  loquaris.  An  vereris  ne 
apud  posteros  infame  tibi  sit,  quod  videaris  familiaris  nobis  esse  ? " 
expresseritque  eclogam  ad  se  cuius  initium  est  cum  tot  sustineas  .  .  .  .' 
This  story  comes  immediately  after  a  reference  to  the  Carmen  Saecu- 
lare  and  the  Fourth  Book  of  the  Odes.  The  sermones  quosdam  and 
the  eius  modi  scriplis  cannot  have  been  the  Satires,  published  fifteen 
years  earlier,  and  can  scarcely  have  been  the  First  Book  of  the  Epistles, 
which  had  been  before  the  public  for  some  years.  These  words  must 
therefore  refer  to  Epist.  2,  2  and  3,  already  known  to  Augustus  before 
they  were  formally  published.  All  this  falls  into  proper  sequence  with 
the  references  to  the  campaigns  of  15-14  B.C.,  referred  to  in  vss.  252- 
253,  and  points  to  14  or  13  B.C.  as  the  date  of  composition. 

The  course  of  thought  is  natural  and  easy,  shifting  from  one  aspect 
of  the  subject  to  another  without  following  a  formal  scheme.  Some 
general  divisions  will  be  noticed:  vss.  5-92.  the  overestimate  of  early 
writers  in  comparison  with  new  poetry;  93-117,  the  historical  develop- 
ment which  has  resulted  in  the  present  situation;  118-138,  the  contri- 
butions of  the  poet  to  the  welfare  of  society;  139-213,  the  special 
disadvantages  and  defects  of  dramatic  writing;  214-250,  the  good  influ- 
ence of  the  patronage  of  Augustus  upon  literature ;  250-270,  Horace's 
own  relation  to  the  patronage  of  Augustus. 

In  the  Second  Book  of  the  Epistles  the  form  of  versified  letter  is 
somewhat  changed.  The  three  Epistles  are  all  long  and  their  very 
length  destroys  the  illusion  of  the  letter  form ;  they  necessarily  become 
essays,  addressed,  it  is  true,  to  an  individual,  but  intended  for  the  public  t 


EPISTVLAE  [2,1,2 

In  this  Epistle  the  personal  tone  is  also  subdued  by  the  fact  that  it 
was  addressed  to  the  Emperor.  The  opening  lines,  therefore,  though 
they  are  concerned  entirely  with  the  personal  aspect  and  not  at  all  with 
the  subject  of  the  letter,  are  distinctly  and  quite  properly  formal.  The 
close,  from  vs.  250  to  the  end,  is  also  personal,  having  to  do  with 
Horace's  own  relation  to  literature  and  to  Augustus,  and  here  there  is 
a  lighter  tone,  especially  Irom  vs.  264  to  the  end.  At  other  points,  too, 
as  in  214  ff.,  there  is  a  certain  measure  of  appeal  to  Augustus  to  use  his 
influence  for  the  good  of  literature.  In  general,  however,  Horace  has 
not  made  any  very  serious  effort  to  preserve  the  illusion  of  a  letter. 

On  the  other  hand,  this  is  not  a  formal  essay  ;  it  is  rather  the  un- 
studied comment  of  a  veteran  man  of  letters  upon  the  condition  and 
prospects  of  the  literature  of  his  time.  The  particular  subjects  selected 
for  comment  or  criticism  are  not  indeed  limited  to  Horace's  own  experi- 
ence, but  they  are  in  part  suggested  by  it.  The  whole  of  the  first  third 
of  the  Epistle  is  a  protest  against  the  over-  valuation  of  the  early  Latin 
poetry  and  a  defense  of  living  writers,  including  Horace  himself,  against 
the  disposition  to  undervalue  the  present.  This  is,  in  some  sense,  a 
continuation  of  the  argument  of  Sat.  1,4;  i,  10  ;  2,  I,  and  Epist.  1,19, 
but  it  would  be  pressing  it  too  far  to  find  in  it  the  motive  of  the  whole 
letter.  In  other  parts,  in  118-138,  in  139  ff.,  Horace  is  writing  as  a 
student  of  literary  history,  selecting  such  portions  of  the  rhetorical 
tradition  as  suited  his  purpose  and  using  them  to  illustrate  and  define 
the  situation  of  his  time. 

This  Epistle  deserves  most  careful  reading.  Much  of  the  subject- 
matter,  it  is  true,  has  no  immediate  relation  to  modern  conditions, 
though  the  comments  upon  the  stage  are  an  exception  and  might 
have  been  written  for  a  magazine  in  this  century.  The  literary  history, 
also,  must  be  taken  with  much  reserve  ;  it  is  only  the  current  teaching 
of  the  scholar  and  is  in  many  points  quite  incorrect.  But  the  easy  turn 
of  the  thought,  the  mastery  of  happy  expression,  the  humor  and  the 
occasional  satire,  all  show  that  Horace  came  toward  the  close  of  life 
with  ripening  powers  —  Integra  cum  mente,  as  he  had  wished. 


Cum  tot  sustineas  et  tanta  negotia  solus, 
res  Italas  armis  tuteris,  moribus  ornes, 

i.  solus  :  others  (Agrippa.  Tibe-  2.   res  Italas  :  no  more  than  rent 

rius)  were  associated  with  him,  but  publicam,  'the  state.'  —  moribus: 

the  real  responsibility  rested  upon  one  of  the  purposes  which  Augus- 

Augustus  alone.  tus  kept    most    distinctly   before 

135 


&  io 

A' 


t,  3]  HORATI 

legibus  erne'naes,  in  publica  commoda  peccem, 
si  longo  sermone  morer  tua  tempora,  Caesar. 
Romulus  et  Liber  pater  et  cum  Castor^Pplluxf 
post  ingentia  facta  deorum  in  templa  recepti,-^  % 
dum  terras  hominumque  colunt  geruis,  aspera  bella 

unt,  agros  adsignant,  oppida  condunt, 
ploravere  suis  non  respondere  favorem 
speratum  meritis.     Diram  qui  contudit  hydram 
notaque  fatali  portenta  labore  subegit, 


him  was  the  need  of  social  reform/ 
which  he  attempted  to  bring 
about  by  a  return  to  stricter  stand- 
ards. He  took  great  pains  to 
set  a  good  example  himself  and 
tried,  though  with  little  success, 
to  train  his  family  in  the  good 
old  ways.  —  ornes  :  provide,  fur- 
nish ;  this  is  the  proper  sense  of 
ornare. 

3.  legibus :     many    laws    were 
passed  to  regulate   marriage  and 
divorce,  to  control  bribery,  to  limit 
expense,  all  with  very  small  re- 
sults. 

4.  longo:    this  and    the   other 
epistles  of  this  book  are  in  fact 
long,  as  compared  with  Horace's 
other     writings.      He    does    not 
mean,  therefore,  '  if  I  should  delay 
you  by  a  long  discourse,'  but  'if 
this    long    epistle   should   detain 
you.'     The  modest  suggestion   is 
'  do  not  allow  me  to  detain  you, 
but  put  off  the  reading  to  a  con- 
venient time.1 

5-17.    'Other  heroes  have  not 
been  honored  till  after  their  death, 


iut  we  have  recognized  your  worth 
while  you  are  still  with  us.' 

5.  Liber:  the  god  Dionysus,  as 
a    bringer    of    civilization,    who 
taught  men  to  cultivate  the  vine, 
not  Bacchus,  as  the  god  of  drink- 
ing. —  The  list  of  beneficent  gods 
and     heroes,     Romulus,      Liber, 
Castor   and   Pollux,    Hercules,   is 
traditional  and  occurs  with  slight 
variations     in    many   places,   e.g., 
Carm.  I,  12,  21-28;  3,  3,  9-16; 
Cic.  de  Nat.  Dear.  2,  24,  62,  where 
Aesculapius  is  added. 

6.  templa :  t.e.,  into  the  dwell- 
ing places  of  the  gods  in  heaven  ; 
an  old  sense  of  templum. 

7-8.  The  various  steps  in  ad- 
vancing civilization.  Cf.  Sat.  I,  3, 
99-105. 

10.  contudit :  crushed  with  his 
club. 

u.  fatali:  'decreed  by  the 
Fates,'  fated,  not  '  fatal.'  —  por- 
tenta :  he  is  thinking  especially 
of  those  labors  of  Hercules  which 
consisted  in  the  killing  of  de- 
structive monsters. 


130 


EHSTVLAE 

coriiperit  invidiam  supremo  fine  domari. 
Vrit  enim  fulgdre  suo,  qui  praegravat  artes 
infra  se  positas,  :extinctus  amabitur  idem. 

15      Praesenti  tibi  maturos  largjmur  honores 

iurandasque  tuum  per  riurheln  ponimus  aras, 
nil  oriturum  alias,  nil  ortum  tale  fatentes.  e^--— 
Sed  tuus  hie  populus  sapiens  et  iustus  in  unof/   .  t 
te  nostris  ducibus,  te  Graiis  anteferendo, 

20      cetera  hjbqua'quam  simili  ratione  modoque 
aestimat,  et  nisi  quae  terris  semota  suisque 


.        .. 


12.  invidiam:  this  repeats  the 
thought  of  vs.  9  and  leads  on  to 
the  main  theme,  the  invidia  which 
poets  encountered.  Strictly,  the 
word  is  not  in  place  in  the  story  of 
Hercules. — supremofine :  />.,'only 
by  death,' '  not  until  after  his  death.' 

13-14.  urit:  transferred  from 
physical  pain  to  the  suffering 
of  emotion.  Here  the  physical 
sense  is  to  dazzle,  blind,  zifulgore 
shows.  —  praegravat :  literally, 
•weighs  down ;  to  be  interpreted 
with  infra  se  positas.  —  artes : 
flowers,  almost  the  same  as 
virtutes.  —  The  whole  expression 
is  difficult  of  analysis,  first,  because 
two  different  figures  are  used  in 
urit  and  praegravat,  and,  second, 
because  of  the  mixture  of  the  con- 
crete (qui,  extinctus,  amabitur) 
and  the  abstract  (prae^rai'at, 
artes).  The  underlying  sense  is 
'  he  who  is  superior  to  others  in 
his  powers  and  who  thus  makes 
others  feel  their  inferiority,  excites 
envy  by  his  greatness.'  —  ama- 


bitur :  '  '  but  after  his    death   hia 
virtues  are  recognized.' 

15.  praesenti  tibi :  '  to  you,  it  is 
true,  recognition  has  come  during 
your    lifetime.'  —  maturos:     i.e., 
'  before  it  was  too  late.' 

16.  numen :  an  unofficial  deifi- 
cation  of  Augustus    began   early 
(29  B.C.)    in   the    provinces   and 
was  then  taken  up  in  some  parts 
of    Italy.     But    the    only    formal 
recognition  of  this  in  Rome  was  a 
cult  of  the  genius  Augusti,  with 
altars  where  oaths  could  be  taken. 
The  complete  deification  was  not 
until  after  the  death  of  Augustus, 
who     during     his     lifetime     dis- 
couraged these  extravagances. 

18.  'But    this    recognition    of 
present  merit  is  by  no  means  ex- 
tended  to   poets    and   poetry.'  — 
tuus :  with  reference  back  to  vss. 
15-17. 

19.  anteferendo  :  in   apposition 
with  unff,  anticipating  the  single 
exception  to  cetera. 

21-22.   terris    semota:    'which 


137 


7<y 

•f     C          JitsuS-' 


X     2,1,22] 


ORATI 


re  vetanjes, 
vregum 


temporibus  defuncta  videt,  fastidit  et  odit, 
sic  fautor  veterum,  ut  tabulas  pecc 

l    •  •     •  r 

quas  bis  quinque  vin  sanxerunt,  fo 
25      vel  Gabiis  vel  cum  rigidis  aequata  Sabrms, 

pontificum  libyos,  annosa  volumina  vatum, 
-^oictitetAlbano  Musas  in  monte  locutas. 

W) 

i'-  had  passed  away  from  the  earth.' 


temporibus  defuncta  :  '  and  had 
:ompleted    the    time  allotted    to 
them.'   The  phrases  belong  strictly 
to   the    writers    of  books,  rather 
-j   than  to  the  writings. 

23.  sic  fautor :   the  verbal  force 
of  many  nouns  was   so  strongly 
felt  that  they  may  even,  in  combi- 
nation  with   <y.sv?,   take   an   accu- 
sative,   or,    as    here,   an   adverb. 
Translate    by    a    verb ;  '  and    so 
strongly  favors   ancient    writings 
that.  .  .  .'  —  veterum:  neuter, like 
cetera.  —  tabulas :     the    Twelve 
Tables. 

24.  bis  quinque  viri :   the  De- 
cemvirs. 

25.  Gabiis:     governed   by  the 
following  cum.     A   copy   of   this 
treaty,    made    by    Tarquin    with 
Gabii,   written   in   archaic  letters 
on  bull's  hide,  was  still  in  existence 
in  the  time  of  Dionysius  of  Hali- 
carnassus,  in  Horace's  time.    Cf. 
Livy,  i,  54.     Several  treaties  with 
the    Sabines    were    preserved. — 
aequata  :  ratified.  The  implication 
that  they  were  'on  equal  terms'  is 
merely  conventional. 

26.  pontificum  libros:   the  rec- 
ords of  rituals  and  of  events  of 


religious  significance,  dating  back 
to  the  earliest  use  of  writing  in 
Rome.  —  volumina  :  prophecies 
and  oracles,  written  in  some  of 
the  early  verse  forms  like  the  Sa- 
turnian.  Livy  mentions  in  25,  12 
certain  carmina  which  foretold 
the  battle  of  Cannae. 

27.  dictitet:  the  subject  is  still 
populiis.  —  Albano  ...  in  monte  : 
one  of  the  most  sacred  spots  in 
early  Roman  worship ;  if  the 
Muses  transferred  their  home  from 
Greece  to  Italy,  as  such  opinions 
would  seem  to  imply,  then  the 
Alban  Mount  would  become  their 
Helicon. — Musas  .  .  .  locutas:  this 
seems  to  be  a  reminiscence  of  the 
phrase  of  Aelius  Stilo  and  Varro, 
quoted  by  Quint.  10,  I,  99,  'Mu- 
sas Plautino  sermone  locuturas 
fuisse,  si  Latine  loqui  vellent.'  — 
Though  these  early  records  are 
lost,  there  are  fragments  enough 
to  show  that  they  were  composed 
in  an  extremely  formal  and 
cramped  style,  that  they  were,  in 
fact,  not  literature  at  all.  Horace 
is  using  extreme  examples  to  lay 
a  foundation  for  his  argument 
against  the  school  of  critics  who 
maintained  with  an  excess  of  zeal 


138 


r  \ 


EPISTVLAE 


[2.  '-  35 


Si,  quia  Graiorum  sunt  antiquissima  quaeque 
scripta  vel  optima,  Romani  pensantur  eadem 

30      scriptores  trutina,  non  est  quod  multa  loquamur : 
nil  intra  est  olea,  nil  extra  est  in  nuce  duri ; 
venimus  ad  summum  fortunae,  pingimus  atque 
psallimus  et  luctamur  Achivis  doctius  unctis. 
Si  meliora  dies,  ut  vina,  poemata  reddit, 

35      scire  velim  chartis  pretium  quotus  adroget  annus. 


the  value  of  the  early  Latin  litera- 
ture. 

28-33-  'The  fact  that  the  old- 
est Greek  writers  are  the  best 
does  not  prove  that  the  same 
thing  is  true  in  Latin  literature.' 

28.  Graiorum:    the  more  poetic 
word.     In  the  Satires  Horace  pre- 
fers Graecus ;   but  the  distinction 
is   not  sharply  made,  cf.  vs.  90, 
below. 

29.  optima :  Horace  is  thinking 
in  a  general  way  of  the  fact  that 
Greek  literature  begins  with  Ho- 
mer; he  is  not  following  out  the 
argument  into  details,  like  the  com- 
parison of  the  merits  of  Archilo- 
chus  and  Alcaeus,  and  he  is  not 
thinking  at  all   of  the  place   of 
tragedy. 

30.  trutina:  cf.  the  similar  use 
of  this   figure   in  Sai.    i,   3,   72, 
where    ponetur     corresponds     to 
pensantur, — non  est  quod:    i.e., 
'there  is  no  more  to  be  said,1  'it  is 
an  end  of  all  rational  argument, 
and  we  can  prove  anything.' 

31.  intra,    extra:      adverbs.  — 
olea :    with  in  to  be  supplied  from 
in  nuce ;  cf.  Gabtis,vs.  25.  — duri: 


with  nil.  'The  same  kind  of  ar- 
gument from  analogy  would  prove 
that  as  a  nut  is  hard  outside  and 
soft  inside,  so  an  olive  must  be 
the  same.' 

32-33-  'By  the  same  reasoning, 
as  we  have  become  masters  of  the 
world,  we  must  be  masters  of  the 
Greeks  in  all  the  arts.'  This  is 
another  illustration,  beside  that 
of  vs.  31,  of  the  absurdities  to 
which  the  argument  of  28-29 
would  lead.  —  pingimus,  psalli- 
mus, luctamur:  literature,  paint- 
ing and  sculpture,  music,  and 
gymnastics  are  the  four  liberal 
arts  on  which  Greek  education 
was  based. — unctis:  with  refer- 
ence only  to  the  last  mentioned 
art,  luctamur. 

34-49.  A  new  argument;  'the 
measurement  of  poetry  by  its 
antiquity  is  absurd,  because  the 
standard  is  shifting.  How  many 
years  are  required  to  make  a 
writer  old  ? ' 

34.  dies :    time ;  cf.  Carm.  3,  6, 
45,  quid  non  itnminuit  dies  ? 

35.  quotus  .  .  .  annus :  the  Eng- 
lish idiom  requires  a  plural. 


139 


2,  I,  36J 


HO  K  ATI 


Scriptor  abhinc  annos  centum  qui  decidit,  inter 
perfectos  veteresque  ref erri  debet  an  inter 

\  /  j'li  •    UIA 

<*AJK^viles  atque  novos  ?     Excludat  ruigiafinis. 

'Est  vetus  atque  probus  centum  qui  perficit  annos.' 
40      Quid,  qui  depeilit  minor  uno  mense  vel  anno, 

inter  quos  referendus  erit,  veteresne  poetas,^ n^jl^^  1 

an  quos  et  praesens  et  postera  re^^t&Vaetas  ? 

'  Iste  quidem  veteres  inter  ponetur  honeste,- 

qui  vel  mense  br.evi  vel  toto  est  iunior  anno.' 
/\iijf  .  liicvv* 

45      Vtor  permissp,  caiidaeque  pilos  u't  equinae 

paul-latim  fvelto  et  demo  unum,  demo  etiam  unum, 
dum  cadat  eltfsus  ratione  riientis  acervi, 


45-47-  The  argument  called  So- 
rites, the  argument  of  the  'falling 
heap.'  Given  a  sufficient  amount 
of  grain  to  be  called  a  heap 
(trwpds),  will  it  still  be  a  heap  if 
one  grain  is  taken  away  ?  And  at 
what  point,  if  one  still  continues 
to  take  away  a  grain  at  a  time,  will 
it  cease  to  be  a  heap  ?  Another 
form  of  the  argument  was  to  ask 
how  many  hairs  may  be  lost  before 
a  man  can  fairly  be  called  bald 
(<£aAa*pds) .  —  permisso :  the  con- 
cession in  vss.  43-44.  —  caudae 
.  .  .  equinae :  this  is  either  a  con- 
fusion of  the  argument  of  the 
<£aAa/cpds  with  a  story  about  the 
pulling  out  of  the  hairs  from  a 
horse's  tail  one  at  a  time,  to  show 
what  may  be  accomplished  by 
patience  (Val.  Max.  7,  3,  6),  or  it 
is  some  variant  of  the  argument, 
unknown  to  us. — ratione:  -the 
argument,  the  reasoning. 


-W     ' 

36.  decidit:    the   figure   of  the 
falling  leaf. 

37.  referri:     be    set    down,    be 
counted. 

38.  finis :  a  definite  line,  here  a 
definite  figure,  like  centum. 

40.  The  argument  is  general,  as 
centum  was  of  course  suggested  as 
a  round  number ;  but  Horace  prob- 
ably noticed  the  fact  that  this  limit 
would  exclude  from  the  veteres 
atque  probi  Lucilius,  who  was 
highly  praised  by  the  admirers  of 
the  early  literature.  He  died  in  103 
B  c.,  and  would  therefore  fall  short 
of  the  time  by  only  a  few  years. 

42.  respuat:  the  subjv.  means 
'should,  according  to  your  rule, 
refuse  to  accept.1 

43-44.  '  Such  a  trifle  as  a  month 
or  even  a  whole  year  should  not 
count.1  —  iste:  'the  man  you  men- 
tion.'—  honeste:  -with  credit,  to 
his  honor. 


140 


EPISTVLAE 


f2,  I,  55 


qui  redit  ad  fastos  et  virtutem  aestimat  annis 
miraturque  nihil  nisi  quod  Libitina  sacravit. 

50      Ennius  et  sapiens  et  fortis  et  alter  Homerus, 
ut  critici  dicunt,  leviter  curare  videtur 
quo  promissa  cadant  et  somnia  Pythagorea. 
Naevius  in  manibus  non  est  et  mentibus  haeret 
paene  recens  ?     Adeo  sanctum  est  vetus  omne  poema 

55      Anfbigitur  quoties  uter  utro  sit  prior,  aufert*   yL. 

48.  redit  ad  fastos:  ' turns  back 
to  the  Fasti,'  i.e.,  goes  to  the  record 
of  years  and  dates  for  his  standard. 
The  general  phrase  is  made  more 
specific  in  aestimat  and  miratur. 

49.  Libitina :    the  goddess  asso- 
ciated with  funerals ;  cf.  Sat.  2,  6, 
19. 

50-62.  'But  let  us  look  in  more 
detail  at  the  old  and  greatly  ad- 
mired Roman  poets,  and  at  the 
critical  and  popular  judgments  of 
them.' 

50.  sapiens :  a  general  term  of 
praise  used  also  by  Horace  of  Lu- 
cilius    (Sat.    2,    i,    17).  —  fortis: 
with  reference  to  his  descriptions 
of  wars  and  heroes.  —  alter  Home- 
rus :  these  words  were  used  of  him 
by   Lucilius   and    expressed   with 
exaggeration    the    prevalent    atti- 
tude of  critics. 

51.  leviter  curare :    '  to  care  but 
little,'  'to  be  indifferent.' 

52.  quo  .  .  . cadant :  '  how  they 
turn    out.'  —  somnia :    in    the  be- 
ginning  of  the   Annales   Ennius 
told  how  Homer  had  come  to  him 
in  a  dream  and    had   said    that 
Ennius    was    a    reincarnation    of 


Homer  himself,  according  to  the 
doctrine  of  the  transmigration  of 
souls,  taught  by  Pythagoras.  — 
These  lines  about  Ennius  give  the 
critical  estimate  of  students  of  the 
early  literature  like  Varro,  but 
with  touches  of  irony,  especially  in 
leviter  curare  videtur ;  'he  is  so 
securely  established  that  he  does 
not  need  to  care  —  and  in  fact 
does  not  care  —  whether  his  per- 
formance equals  his  promise  or 
not.' 

53-54.  Naevius :  died  in  204 ; 
writer  of  comedies  and  especially, 
in  this  connection,  the  first  of 
Roman  epic  poets.  His  Bellum 
Pnnicum  in  Saturnian  verse  was 
supplanted  by  the  Annals  of 
Ennius,  as  that  in  turn  gave  way 
to  the  Aeneid.  —  paene  recens  : 
i.e.,  '  we  read  him  almost  as  if  his 
works  were  still  new,'  a  little  hit  at 
the  critics,  who,  in  spite  of  their 
praise  of  the  old,  are  as  eager  as 
any  one  to  read  the  last  thing  that 
has  appeared. 

55  -56-  uter  utro :  such  ques- 
tions were  much  debated  by  critics 
and  grammarians ;  they  arranged 


141 


a,  i,  56] 


HO  R  ATI 


Pacuvius  docti  famam  senis,  Accius  alti, 
dicitur  Afrani  toga  convenisse  Menandro, 
Plautus  ad  exemplar  Siculi  properare  Epicharmi, 
vincere  CaeciliusLgravitate,  Terentius  arte. 
60      Hos  yeaisctt:  le^os  'arto  ^ttpata  theatre 

spectat  Roma  potens  ;  habet  hos  numeratque  poetas 
ad  nostram  tempus  Livi  scriptoris  ab  aevo. 
Interdum  vulgus  rectum  videt,  est  ubi  peccat. 
Si  veteres  ita  miratur  laudatque  poetas, 


writers  in  lists  according  to  their 
merits,  with  some  words  of  com- 
ment on  each,  as  here.  —  Pacuvius  : 
died  in  132,  one  of  the  great  tragic 
writers. — Accius:  died  in  104, 
also  a  writer  of  tragedies.  The 
judgment  here  expressed  was  the 
traditional  judgment  and  is  re- 
peated by  Quintil.  10,  i,  77. 

57-59.  Four  comic  poets,  with 
the  conventional  estimate  of  each. 
Afranius,  a  contemporary  of 
Accius,  wrote  comedies  on  Ro- 
man subjects,  called  by  gram- 
man  ansfa&utae  togatae,  but  in  the 
manner  of  the  Greek  New  Comedy. 
He  is  said  to  have  used  material 
from  Menander,  and  this  is  ex- 
pressed in  toga  convenisse.  Plautus 
(died  in  184),  the  representative  of 
the  fabula  palliata,  comedy  in 
which  the  actors  wore  the  Greek 
Pallium.  His  excellence  was  held 
to  be  in  the  quick  and  easy  move- 
ment {properare)  of  his  dialogue, 
in  which  he  was  thought  to  equal 
Epicharmus,  a  Sicilian  writer  of 
comedy.  The  general  form  of 


expression  pairs  Afranius  and 
Plautus  off  together,  though  in  fact 
Plautus  should  be  classed  with  the 
two  following  writers.  Caecilius 
(died  about  168)  was  sometimes 
considered  the  greatest  of  the 
writers  of  the  fabula  palliata. 
Terentius  (died  in  160)  was  the 
last  .of  the  greater  writers  in  this 
style.  Of  all  these  poets  only  the 
works  of  Plautus  (twenty  plays) 
and  Terence  (six  plays)  are  pre- 
served ;  the  rest  are  in  rather 
scanty  fragments. 

60.  arto :    so   crowded   that  it 
seemed  small. 

61.  potens  :  ironically,  like  veni- 
mus  ad  sutnmum  fortunae,  vs.  32. 

62.  Livi:     Livius    Andronicus, 
the  earliest  of  Latin  writers,  with 
whose   production   of  a  play,  in 
240     B.C.,     Latin   literature    was 
thought  to  have  begun. 

63.  The     thought    is     turning 
back  from  the  judgment  of  critics 
to  the  popular  opinion,  connecting 
thus  with  vs.  i8ff. 

64.  si :  the  alternatives  are  put 


142 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  i,  75 


65      ut  nihil  anteferat,  nihil  illis  compare!,  errat 
Si  quaedam  nimis  antique,  si  pleraque  dure 
dicere  credit  eosTTgra^vjfc  multa  fatetur.M 
et  sapit  et  mecum  facitet  love  iudicat  aequo. 
Non  equidem  itt^c^or  delendaque  carmina  Livi 

70      esse  reor,  memini  quae  plag6sum  mihi  parvo 
Orbilium  dictare,  sed  emendata  videri 
pulchraque  et  exactis  minimum  distantia  miror; 
inter  quae  verbum  emicuit  si  forte  decorum  et 
si  versus  paullo  co'n^rfmqjrunus  et  alter, 

75      iniuste  totum  ducit  venditque  poema. 


in  two  conditional  clauses,  without 
any  indication  of  the  adversative 
relation;  cf.  Efiist.  i,  17,  6,  and 
ii. 

66-67.  antique :  in  the  old  and 
stiff  style.  —  dure  :  with  special 
reference  to  the  versification ;  cf. 
Sat.  i,  4,  8,  durus  componere 
versus,  of  Lucilius.  —  ignave : 
flatly,  without  making  sufficient 
effort  to  find  attractive  and  agree- 
able expression. — pleraque  :  many 
things,  not  '  most  things.' 

68.  mecum  facit :  supports  my 
•view. 

69.  delenda  .  .   .  esse  reor :    a 
periphrasis   for  another  verb  like 
insector ;   'I  am  not  attacking  or 
desiring-to-destroy  .  .  .  .'  —  Livi : 
selected  here  partly  because  he  had 
not   been   mentioned   in   the   list 
above,  vss.  50-59,  'partly  because 
his  writings  illustrate  with  special 
clearness   the   faults   of  the   very 
early  literature. 

70-71.    plagosum  .  .  .  Orbilium: 


the  phrase  of  the  pupil  has  con- 
ferred immortality  upon  the 
teacher.  Suetonius  included  him 
in  his  de  Grammaticis,  with  a  ref- 
erence to  this  passage.  This  was 
the  school  which  Horace  attended 
in  Rome,  Sat.  I,  6,  76  ff.  —  dictare  : 
the  poetry,  probably  the  Latin 
translation  of  the  Odyssey,  was 
dictated  to  the  pupils  to  be  written 
down  and  learned. 

72.  exactis  .  .  .  distantia:  little 
short  of  perfect.  —  miror :  in  inten- 
tional contrast  to  insector,  delenda 
.  .  .  reor,  as  a  very  mild  expres- 
sion of  judgment. 

73-75-  emicuit:  stands  out 
above  the  mass,  with  decorum, 
as  a  predicate.  —  versus  :  Horace 
frequently  refers  to  the  great  ad- 
vance in  the  art  of  versification, 
which  is  most  conspicuous  in  the 
hexameter.  —  ducit  venditque  :  to 
be  taken  together,  '  carries  along 
and  sells ' ;  the  first  verb  is,  as 
often,  very  general  and  needs  the 


143 


763 


HORAT 


.  . 

Indignor  quidquam  reprehendi,  non  quia  crasSe 
compositum  illepi<Jeve  putetur,  sed  quia  nuper  ; 
nee  VErVh^rh  antiquis,  sed  honorem  et  praemia  posci 
Recte  necne  cmdurrTfloresque  perambulet  Attae 
fabula  si  dubitem,  clament  periisse  pudorem 
cuncti  paene  patres,  ea  cum  reprehendere  coner, 
quae  gravis  Aesopus,  quae  doctus  Roscius  egit  ; 
vel  quia  nil  rectum  nisi  quod  placuit  sibi  ducunt, 
vel  quia  turpe  putant  parere  minoribus  et  quae 
x*-imberbi  didicere  senes  perdenda  fateri. 
lam  Saliare  Numae  carmen  qui  laudat,  et  illud, 


interpretation  of  the  more  definite 
following  word. 

77.  putetur :  a  verb  of  thinking 
is  often  illogically  inserted  into  a 
causal  clause  in  which  the  opinion 
of  some  other  person  than  the 
writer  is  expressed,  in  order  to 
emphasize  by  its  meaning  as  well 
as  by  its  mode  the  fact  that  the 
writer  is  not  responsible  for  the 
opinion. 

79.  crocum  floresque  :  the  stage 
was  sprinkled  with  saffron,  to  give 
a  pleasant  fragrance,  and  appar- 
ently with  flowers,  though  the  cus- 
tom is  not  elsewhere  alluded  to.  — 
Attae  :  T.  Quinctius  Atta,  died  in 
78  B.C.,  a  writer  of  comedies, 
fabulaetogatae.  He  is  not  strictly 
among  the  veteres,  but  he  illus- 
trates the  contrast  between  the 
treatment  of  living  writers  and  of 
those  no  longer  living. 

8 1 .  patres  :  the  men  of  an  older 
generation,  who  had  seen  these 
plays  in  their  youth. 


82.  Aesopus :  a  tragic  actor  of 
the  Ciceronian  period,  highly  es- 
teemed for  his  acting  and  his 
character ;  hence  gravis.  —  Ros- 
cius :  an  actor  of  comedy,  also 
very  highly  regarded.  Cicero's 
speech  pro  Roscio  Comoedo  was 
made  in  a  suit  to  which  he  was  a 
party. 

83-85-  These  ordinary  weak- 
nesses of  age  are  connected  with 
the  general  course  of  thought  by 
the  fact  that  they  explain  the  un- 
reasonable prejudice  against  the 
new  writers. 

86.  Saliare  ...  carmen :  a 
chant  of  the  guild  of  the  Salii. 
'  leaping '  priests.  The  fragments 
are  given  in  Baehrens1  Fragmenta, 
pp.  29  ff.  Quintilian  (i,  6,  40) 
says  of  them  vix  sacerdotibus  suis 
satis  intellect  a.  —  Numae  :  this 
king  was  traditionally  regarded 
as  the  founder  of  many  religious 
ceremonies. 


144 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  i,  96 


quod  mecum  ignorat,  solus  vult  scire  videri, 
ingeniis  non  ille  favet  plauditque  sepultis, 
nostra  sed  impugnat,  nos  nostraque  lividus  odit. 

90      Quodsi  tarn  Graecis  novitas  invisa  fuisset 

quam  nobis,  quid  nunc  esset  vetus?     Aut  quid  haberet, 
quod  legeret  tereretque  jdritira  publicus  usus  ? 
Vt  primum  positis  ny?gari  Graecia  bellis 
coepit  et  in  vitium  fortuna  labier  aequa, 

95      nunc  athletarum  studiis  nunc  arsit  equorum, 
marmoris  aut  eboris  fabros  aut  aeris  amavit, 


88.  non  favet  plauditque :  t'.e., 
'  such  absurd  praise  of  the  past  is 
not  what  it  purports  to  be ;  it  is 
in  reality  nothing  but  an  expres- 
sion of  jealous  dislike  of  the  writers 
of  the  present.' 

92.  tereret :  frequently  used,  as 
in  English,  of  the  wearing  out  of 
a   book    by  repeated  and   careful 
reading.  —  viritim  .  .  .  usus :    a 
mixture,  as  in  vss.   13-14,  of  the 
concrete  and  the  abstract,  to  ex- 
press   emphatically   the   universal 
reading  of  the  Greek  writers. 

93-117.  Contrasts  and  resem- 
blances in  the  history  of  civilization 
in  Greece  and  in  Rome. 

93.  positis    .    .    .    bellis :    after 
the  great  war  for   existence,   the 
Persian  War,  was  over.  —  nugari : 
i.e.,  'to  turn  to  lighter  pursuits.1 
The   word    does   not    necessarily 
imply    censure;     it    is    used    by 
Horace    (Sat.    i,  9,   2)   and    by 
Catullus  (1,4)  of  their  own  lyric 
poetry ;   yet  there  is  in  it  and  in 
vitium  something  of  the  Roman 


feeling  that  art  is  not  quite  a  sen 
ous  business.     <L~- 

i  u-      <fM)  fr^-tr**" 

94.  labier :  s=T.api ;  Horace  uses 
this  old  form  some  half  a  dozen 
times.  —  aequa :  favorable ;  but 
the  word  is  selected  for  the  con- 
trast to  the  figure  in  labier. 

95-100.  A  vivid  picture  of  the 
lively  interest  of  Greece  in  all 
forms  of  art.  The  three  liberal 
arts,  gymnastics  and  games  (95 )» 
sculpture  and  painting  (96-97), 
and  music  and  dancing  (98),  are 
taken  up  in  turn.  The  verbs, 
arsit,  amavit,  suspendit,  estgavisa, 
express  the  intensity  of  the  inter- 
est, and  the  forms  of  sentence, 
nunc  .  .  .  nunc,  aut  .  .  .  aut,  the 
sucession  of  genitives  grouped 
about  the  noun,  express  the  vari- 
ety of  interest. — suspendit:  cf. 
Epist.  i,  6,  14,  defixis  oculis 
animoque  et  corpore  torpet,  and 
torpes,  Sat.  2,  7,  95,  of  gazing  in- 
tently at  a  picture. — tragoedis  : 
the  art  of  acting  is  connected  with 
dancing  and  music. 


HOR.  EP. — 10 


145 


2,  I,  971 


HORATI 


suspendit  picta  vultum  menter&que  tabella, 
nunc  tibicinibus  nunc  est  gavisa  tragoedis ; 
sub  nutrice  puella  velut  si  luderet  infans, 

100  quod  cupide  petiit,  mature  plena  reliquit. 
Hoc  paces  habuere  bonae  ventique  secundi. 
Romae  dulce  diu  fuit  et  sollemne 

mane  domo  vigilare,  client!  pfMti'ere  iura, 
105    cautos  nominibus  rectis  expendere  nummos, 
maiores  audire,  minori  dicere  per  quae 
crescere  res  posset,  'Wnmdamnosa  libid 

101  Quid  placet  aut  odio  est,  quod  non  mutabile  credas  ? 


99-100.  '  Like  a  little  child,  play- 
ing at  the  feet  of  its  nurse,  it  turned 
quickly  from  one  plaything  to  an- 
other.'—  sub  nutrice  :  cf.  Epist.  i, 
1 6,  77,  sub  custode.  —  petiit,  reli- 
quit: the  subject  is  Graecia, 
continued  from  the  preceding  sen- 
tence ;  the  formal  comparison  is 
all  contained  in  vs.  99.  —  mature 
plena :  to  be  taken  together  and 
both  with  reliquit, 

102.  hoc  . . .  habuere  :  'such  was 
the  result,1  going  back  in  thought 
to  vss.  93-94. — paces:  times  of 
Peace.  [But  T  do  not  think  that 
this  translation  explains  the  plural. 
It  may  be  due  to  positis  bellis,  or, 
more  probably,  to  venti  secundi, 
the  plural  being  regular  in  this 
phrase.  The  single  example  in 
Plautus  (Pers.  753)  is  inexplica- 
ble. See,  in  general,  Langen,  Bei- 
trage,  pp.  105  flf.]  —  venti  secundi : 
a  common  figure. 

103-110.  'At  Rome  the  history 
has  been  a  very  different  one.' 


103.  sollemne :  ''the  fixed  cus- 
tom.'—  reclusa :  the  patron  ad- 
mitted freely  all  who  chose  to  come 
to  him  for  help  or  advice. 

105.  cautos :    with    numnws.  — 
rectis :   expressing  in   a  different 
way  the  same  idea  as  cautos. 

106.  maiores,  minor! :  with  refer- 
ence to  the  strict  family  discipline 
and  the  respect  exacted  from  the 
young. 

107.  damnosa  libido:    cf.  dam- 
nosa  Venus,  Epist.  I,  1 8,  21 ;  the 
caution  is  economic,  not  moral. 

The  contrast  in  these  verses  is 
double  ;  Greece  turned  to  the  arts, 
and  changed  quickly  from  one  in- 
terest to  another,  while  Rome  was 
severely  practical,  and  for  a  long 
time  unchanging. 

ioi.  'But  there  is  nothing  so 
fixed  that  it  does  not  at  last  change ; 
we  have  abandoned  everything  else 
and  plunged  into  writing.'  This 
line  stands  in  the  Mss.  after  ioo, 
where  it  breaks  the  thought,  while 


146 


EPISTVLAE 


"5 


Mutavit  mentem  populus  levis  et  calet  uno 
scribe ndi  studio  ;  puerique  patresque  seven 
fronde  comas  vincti  cenant  et  carmina  dictant. 
Ipse  ego,  qui  nullos  me  adfirmo  scribere  versus, 
invenior  Parthis  mendacior,  et  prius  orto 
sole  vigil  calamum  et  chartas  et  scrinia  posco. 
Navem  agere  ignarus  navis  timet ;  abrotonum  aegro 
non   audet   nisi   qui   didicit   dare;    quod   medicorum 

est 

promittunt  medici ;  tractant  fabrilia  fabri : 
scribimus  indocti  doctique  poemata  passim. 
Hie  error  tamen  et  levis  haec  insania  quantas 


at  this  point  it  makes  a  perfect 
middle  step  from  vss.  103-107  to 
io8ff. 

108.  mutavit :  this  takes  up  mu- 
tabile  credas,  with  emphatic  asser- 
tion of  the  reality  of  it ;  ;the  change 
has  actually  occurred.'  —  calet :  as 
Graecia  arsit,  but  uno  studio,  not 
with  many. 

no.  fronde :  with  the  poet's  ivy 
crown,  instead  of  the  usual  garland 
of  flowers.  —  dictant :  they  have  a 
slave  ready,  so  that  they  may  dic- 
tate their  verses  even  while  they 
are  at  dinner. 

in.  ipse  ego :  '  and  I,  who  am 
laughing  at  it,  am  no  better  than 
the  rest.'  —  adfirmo  scribere:  the 
present  tense  implies  '  in  the  very 
act  of  making  the  statement  I  am 
found  to  be  lying  like  a  Dutchman.' 

112.  Parthis  mendacior:  this  is 
merely  one  of  the  expressions  of 
national  hostility,  like  Punica  fides 
or  perfide  Albion.  The  Parthians 


were  at  this  time  the  traditional 
enemies  of  Rome. 

113.  scrinia:  the  boxes  to  put 
the   rolls  in  when  they  were  fin- 
ished. 

114-116.  'All  other  trades  de- 
mand some  knowledge  and  train- 
ing.' 

114.  abrotonum:     a    compara- 
tively harmless  household  remedy, 
yet    even    for    giving   that   some 
knowledge   is    considered    neces- 
sary. 

117.  scribimus:  in  the  emphatic 
position  ;  '  but  writing  may  be  done 
by  anybody  at  any  time.'  —  All 
this  is,  of  course,  to  be  taken  hu- 
morously. It  is  the  amusement 
of  the  trained  professional  at  the 
zealous  eagerness  of  the  amateur. 

118  ff.  'Yet  this  popular  craze 
for  poetry  has  its  good  side;  the 
poetry  may  be  poor,  but  it  keeps 
the  writer  busy  with  harmless 
things.' 


147 


a.  it  "9j 


HORATI 


virtutes  habeat,  sic  collige.     Vatis  avarus 
120    non  temere  est  animus,  versus  amat,  hoc  studet  unum ; 

detrimenta,  fugas  servorum,  incendia  ridet; 

non  fraudem  socio  puerove  incogitat  ullam 

pupillo  ;  vivit  siliquis  et  pane  secundo ; 

militiae  quamquam  piger  et  mains,  utilis  urbi, 
125    si  das  hoc,  parvis  quoque  rebus  magna  iuvari. 

Os  tenerum  pueri  balbumque  poeta  figurat, 

torquet  ab  obscenis  iam  nunc  sermonibus  aurem ; 

mox  etiam  pectus  praeceptis  format  amicis, 

asperitatis  et  invidiae  corrector  et  irae, 
130    recte  facta  refert,  orientia  tempora  notis 


1 19.  sic  collige:  so  Sat.  2, I,  51, 

sic  collige  mecutn. 

120.  non  temere :  not  easily, '  not 
without  strong  reason ' ;  so  Sat.  2, 
2,  116;  Sat.  2,  4,  35 ;  Epist.  2,  2, 

13- 

121.  The    losses    which     most 
people  are   constantly  dreading; 
cf.  Sat.  1,1,  77,  formidare  malos 
fures,  incendia,  servos,  ne  te  com- 
pilent  fugientes. 

123.  siliquis :  standing  for  plain 
living,  as  doesfiane  secundo,  *  bread 
of  an  inferior  quality  of  flour.' 

124.  militiae:  dative;  this  is  a 
joking  reminiscence   of  his  own 
brief  career  as  a  soldier.  —  urbi: 
i.e.,  in  peace,  as  domi  militiae  are 
used  for  '  peace  and  war.' 

125.  si    das    hoc:    i.e.,  'unless 
you  deny  that  so  humble  a  person 
as  a  poet  can  be  of  use  at  all  to 
the  great  Empire.' 

From  this  point,   through   the 


enumeration  of  the  poet's  services 
to  society,  the  thought  turns  to  the 
history  of  poetry,  and  especially  of 
the  drama. 

127.  obscenis:    more  general  in 
meaning  than  the  English  word ; 
low,  harmful,  in   contrast  to  the 
lofty  thought   and   expression   of 
poetry.  —  iam  nunc :  while   he  is 
still  puer. 

128.  mox:    at  the  later  stage, 
when  the  character  (pectus)  is  tak- 
ing shape. — amicis:  like  a  friendly 
adviser  and  helper,  not  with  the 
severity  of  laws. 

129.  Faults  to  which  youth  is 
especially  prone. 

130.  recte  .  .  .  refert :  i.e.,  po- 
etry contains  the  record  of  noble 
action.  —  orientia  tempora :  i.e.,  as 
the  young  man  goes  on  from  one 
period   of  life    to    another,  each 
period  in  turn  rising,  as  it  were, 
above  the  horizon  of  life.     Not  to 


148 


EP1STVLAE 


[2,  I.  138 


'35 


instruit  exemplis,  inopem  solatur  et  aegrum. 
Castis  cum  pueris  ignara  puella  mariti 
disceret  unde  preces,  vatem  ni  Musa  dedisset  ? 
Poscit  opem  chorus  et  praesentia  numina  sentit; 
caelestis  implorat  aquas  docta  prece  blandus, 
avertit  morbos,  metuenda  pericula  pellit ; 
impetrat  et  pacem  et  locupletem  frugibus  annum. 
Carmine  di  super!  placantur,  carmine  Manes. 


be  compared  with  the  English 
'  rising  generation.'  —  notis :  the 
recte  facta,  which,  having  been 
made  known  to  us  through  poetry, 
become  exempla. 

131.  solatur:  by  raising  him 
above  his  discouraging  circum- 
stances. 

132-133.  A  reference  to  the 
Carmen  Saeculare  composed  by 
Horace  for  the  great  festival  in 
17  B.C.  It  was  sung  by  a  chorus 
of  boys  and  girls  ;  C.  S.  6,  virgines 
lectas  puerosque  castos.  —  disceret : 
the  poet  is  thought  of  as  himself 
teaching  the  song  to  the  chorus. 
—  unde :  a  quo.  —  vatem :  the 
more  formal  name  for  the  poet, 
especially  in  his  religious  capac- 
ity. 

i34-*37-  There  were  many  other 
occasions  when  choral  songs  were 
used,  from  early  times,  in  religious 
ceremonies,  e.g.,  Livy,  27,  37 ;  31, 
12,  and  they  probably  formed  a 
part  of  some  of  the  annually  recur- 
ring festivals.  Carm.  1,21  is  such 
a  song  to  Diana  and  Apollo,  and 
Catull.  34  to  Diana.  The  function 
of  the  chorus  is  stated  in  general 


terms  in  vs.  134,  then  more  spe- 
cific instances  are  given  in  135-7, 
and  the  whole  is  summarized  in 
138.  —  poscit  opem:  the  general 
function,  as  in  many  places  in  the 
Carm.Saec.  —  praesentia  .  .  .  sen- 
tit  :  C.  S.  73  f.,  haec  lovem  sent  ire 
deosque  cunctos  \  spem  bonam  cer- 
tainqne  domum  reporto\  the  chorus 
recognizes  the  presence  and  favor 
of  the  gods  to  whom  it  has  prayed. 
—  caelestis  .  .  .  aquas  :  prayers 
for  rain  were  common,  and  there 
was  a  special  ceremony,  called 
aquilicium,  for  this  purpose.  — 
docta :  i.e.,  the  prayer  taught  in 
suitable  formula  by  the  votes.  — 
morbos :  the  performance  of  pre- 
scribed rites,  which  often  included 
a  choral  prayer,  was  one  of  the 
regular  methods  of  averting  pesti- 
lence. —  pericula  :  dangers  to  the 
state,  threatened  invasion,  defeat 
in  battle.  —  locupletem  .  .  .  an- 
num :  the  ambarvalia  was  a  cere- 
mony for  this  purpose. 

138.  A  summary  of  the  whole, 
132-137. — Manes:  i.e.,  di  in- 
feri. 


149 


If  139] 


HORATI 


Agricolae  prisci,  fortes  parvoque  beati, 
140    condita  post  frumenta,  levantes  tempore  festo 
corpus  et  ipsum  animum  spe  finis  dura  ferentem, 
cum  sociis  operum,  pueris  et  coniuge  fida, 
Tellurem  porco,  Silvanum  lacte  piabant, 
floribus  et  vino  Genium,  memorem  brevis  aevi. 
145    Fescennina  per  hunc  inventa  licentia  morem 


139-i55-  A  history  of  the  rise 
of  poetry  in  Italy,  before  the  com- 
ing in  of  the  Greek  influence,  lead- 
ing up  to  a  critical  estimate  of  it. 
This  history  is  not,  however,  based 
upon  any  knowledge  of  the  devel- 
opment of  Italian  poetry  before 
Livius  Andronicus.  That  develop- 
ment, whatever  it  may  have  been, 
had  passed  entirely  unrecorded. 
The  account  which  Horace  here 
gives  and  the  corresponding  ac- 
count in  Livy  7,  2  are  based  upon 
some  Greek  rhetorical  tradition, 
adapted  to  embrace  the  few  facts 
which  were  known  by  inference  or 
tradition,  like  the  versus  Fescen- 
nini  (145)  and  the  lex  of  the 
Twelve  Tables  (i52f.). 

139.  fortes  parvoque  beati:  /.<?., 
simple  and  happy,  as  in  a  Golden 
Age,  when  song  might,  as  it  was 
thought,  originate. 

140.  condita  :  the  harvest-home 
festival. 

141.  ipsum  animum:  and  even 
their     spirits.  —  ferentem :     i.e. , 
which  had  borne  hardship  up  to 
this  time. 

142.  pueris :  as  Ofellus  (Sat.  2, 
2,  115)   labors  in  the  fields  with 


his  sons.  —  coniuge:  so  Epod.  2, 
39  ff. —  These  are  details  of  the 
ideal  life  of  the  farmer,  cultivat- 
ing his  own  fields  with  the  help  of 
his  family,  not  working  on  the  great 
estate  of  an  absentee  landlord. 

143.  Tellurem:    mentioned    by 
Varro  (R.R.  I,  i,  4)  as  one  of  the 
gods  to  be  worshiped  by  farmers. 
—  Silvanum :  called  tutor  finium 
in  Epod.  2,  22. 

144.  Genium:  a  protecting  spirit, 
born    to  each  human   being  and 
accompanying  him    through    life 
to    the    end,   sharing    his    pleas- 
ures    and     sorrows.       Offerings 
were  made  to  the  Genius,  as  to  a 
divinity,  yet  he  was  mortal   and 
therefore    memorem    brevis  aevt, 
like  the  man  himself. 

145.  Fescennina  .  .  .  licentia  : 
the  Fescennine  verses  survived  in 
historic  times  in  the  form  of  abu- 
sive songs  sung  at  weddings  and  in 
triumphal  processions,  apparently 
to  avert  the  jealousy  of  the  gods, 
which  might  be  awakened  by  the 
felicity  of  the  bridegroom  or  of  the 
successful    general.     A    modified 
specimen  is  given  in  Catullus,  61, 
119  ff.     Horace   here  treats    the 


EriSTVLAE 


versibus  alternis  opprobria  rustica  fudit, 
libertasque  recurrentis  accepta  per  annos 
lusit  amabiliter,  donee  iam  saevus  apertam 
in  rabiem  coepit  verti  iocus  et  per  honestas 

150    ire  domos  impune  minax.     Doluere  cruento 
dente  lacessiti :  fuit  intactis  quoque  cura 
condicione  super  communi ;  quin  etiam  lex 
poenaque  lata,  malo  quae  nollet  carmine  quemquam 
describi :  vertere  modum  formidine  f ustis 

155  ad  bene  dicendum  delectandumque  redacti. 
Graecia  capta  ferum  victorem  cepit  et  artes 
intulit  agresti  Latio  ;  sic  horridus  ille 


custom  of  singing  such  verses  as 
having  been  invented  for  use  in 
rustic  festivals  {per  hunc  morem), 
and  regards  the  abusive  quality  of 
the  songs  as  the  most  important 
element. 

146.  versibus  alternis :  Livy,  7, 
2,  uses  almost  the  same  expression : 
the  singers  are  supposed  to  have 
extemporized   in    turn,   somewhat 
as  in  the  songs  in  the  Eclogues,  3 
and  7. 

147.  libertas :  i.e.,   the  licentia 
became  customary  and  so  a  per- 
mitted   freedom.  —  accepta:     bal- 
ancing  inventa.     Livy    uses   this 
word  also. 

148.  amabiliter :  i.e.,  the  oppro- 
bria rustica  were  at  first  merely 
jocose. 

149.  honestas :  honorable,  with 
the  Roman  feeling  of  respect  for 
the  'great  houses.' 

150.  impune  :  with  minax. 

151.  dente:  the  figure  of  a  sav- 


age animal  is  already  suggested 
in  rabiem.  —  intactis:  others  be- 
side the  lacessiti;  cf.  Sat.  2,  I,  23, 
timet  quamquam  est  intactus  et 
odit,  of  satire. 

152-153.  lex  poenaque  lata:  Cic. 
refers  to  this  (de  Rep.  4,  10,  12), 
si  quis  occentavisset  sive  carmen 
condidisset  quod  infamiam  faceret 
flagitiuimje  alteri,  but  the  exact 
words  of  the  law  are  not  known. 
—  quae  nollet:  'which forbade. 

154.  describi :  cf.  Sat.  1 ,  4,  3,  si 
quis  erat  dignus  describi.  —  formi- 
dine fustis :  the  penalty  was  death 
by  the  rods  of  the  lictors. 

156.  One  of  Horace's  best  and 
most  frequently  quoted  phrases. 

157.  agresti :   referring  back  to 
vss.    139    ff.  —  The   whole   state- 
ment is  to  be  understood  in  a  very 
general  sense.     The  earliest  Greek 
influences,  which  came  in  through 
Livius    Ancironictis.  Ennius,   and 
their  successors  in  the  drama,  were 


IS  i 


a,  i,  158] 


HORATI 


165 


defluxit  numerus  Saturnius  et  grave  virus 
munditiae  pepulere,  sed  in  longum  tamen  aevum 
jnanserunt  hodieque  manent  vestigia  ruris. 
Serus  enim  Graecis  admovit  acumina  chartis, 
et  post  Punica  bella  quietus  quaerere  coepit, 
quid  Sophocles  et  Thespis  et  Aeschylus  utile  ferrent. 
Tentavit  quoque  rem  si  digne  vertere  posset, 
et  placuit  sibi  natura  sublimis  et  acer ; 


at  least  a  century  earlier  than  the 
conquest  of  Greece. 

158.  numerus  Saturnius :  of  this 
old  Italian  meter  many  specimens 
are  extant.  It  was  the  national 
verse  until  it  was  displaced  by  the 
hexameter.  The  earliest  epic, 
the  Bellunt  Punicum  of  Naevius, 
was  in  Saturnians.  Its  irregulari- 
ties justify  the  adj.  horridus. 

—  grave  virus:  i.e.,  the  roughness 
was  like  an  unpleasant  liquid,  op- 
pressive to  the  senses. 

160.  vestigia  ruris : '  of  the  prim- 
itive rudeness  of  rustic  Latium.' 

—  This  is  the  point  of  the  argu- 
ment ;    '  the   early  writers,  whom 
critics   extol  so    highly,   were  in 
fact    only    partially    affected    by 
Greek  influence,  while  we  of  the 
present  time  have  more  perfectly 
learned  Greek  technique .'  It  is  not 
to  be  expected  that  Horace  should 
share  the  modern  view,  which  finds 
so  much  of  interest  in  the  origins 
and  primitive  forms  of  art. 

161.  serus  :  this  refers  backward 
to  manserunt  hodieque  manent  and 
is  then  made  more  definite  in  vs. 
162. 


162.  post  Punica  bella:    these 
words  could  not  be  used  with  ref- 
erence to  the  First  Punic  War  only. 
We  are  obliged  therefore  to  sup- 
pose that  Horace  was  following  an 
erroneous   chronology,    of    which 
there  are  traces  in  other  authors, 
which  made  Livius  Andronicus  a 
contemporary  of  Ennius.  —    The 
thought  here  corresponds  to  vs.  93, 
positis  .  .  .    Graecia     bellis ;     the 
peace   which    succeeded   a   great 
war  gave  opportunity  for  the  culti- 
vation of  literature. 

163.  Thespis:   traditionally  the 
founder  of  the  tragic  drama ;    cf. 
A.   P.  276.      The     chronological 
order  is  not  observed.  —    utile : 
there  is   perhaps  a  touch  of  the 
Roman  attitude  in  the  use  of  this 
word. 

164.  tentavit    rem:    made  the 
attempt.   —    vertere:    used  as  a 
technical   term   of  translating  or 
adapting  a  Greek  play. 

165-166.  placuit  sibi :  i.e.,  '  the 
attempt  was  successful';  the 
phrase  does  not  at  all  imply  'self- 
satisfaction,'  as  the  context  shows. 
—  natura :  this  prepares  for  the 


EPISTVLAE 


1,171 


170 


nam  spirat  tragicum  satis  et  feliciter  audet, 
sed  turpem  putat  inscite  metuitque  litiiram. 
Creditur,  ex  medio  quia  res  arcessit,  habere 
sudoris  minimum,  sed  habet  comoedia  tanto 
plus  oneris,  quanto  veniae  minus.  :Adspice  Plautus 
quo  pacto  partes  tutetur  amantis  ephebi, 


restriction  of  vs.  167.  —  sublimis 
et  acer :  of  lofty  spirit ;  this  is  the 
same  as  the  acer  spiritus  ac  vis  of 
Sal.  i ,  4,  46.  —  spirat  tragicum : 
this  figure  is  especially  poetic;  it 
appears  in  various  forms,  spirare 
bellum,  quietem,  amores  (Carm. 
4,  13,  19),  proelia,  magnum,  mai- 
ora,  and  has  been  taken  over  into 
English.  —  satis :  with  feliciter. 
—  feliciter  audet :  of  the  style,  as 
spirat  is  of  the  spirit.  —  These 
opinions  in  regard  to  the  fitness 
of  Roman  character  to  tragedy 
are  justified  by  the  facts.  There 
was  no  lack  of  the  lofty  and  the 
heroic.  But  the  production  of 
great  tragedy  requires  a  very  high 
esthetic  and  constructive  imagi- 
nation, in  which  the  Romans  were 
lacking. 

167.  This   was  a  favorite  doc- 
trii.e  with  Horace  (cf.  Sat.  I,  10, 
67-72 ;  A.  P.  290)  and  a  natural 
one  in  the  Augustan  Age,  when 
the  efforts  of  writers  in  prose  and 
in  verse  were   directed  most  ear- 
nestly toward  perfection   of  style. 
Cf.,  e.g.,  what  is  said  in  the  Vita 
of  Donatus  about  Vergil's  methods 
of  work. 

168.  ex  medio :  from  ordinary 


life,  in  distinction  from  the  myth- 
ical and  heroic  world  from  which 
tragedy  takes  its  subjects  (res), 

170.  plus  oneris:  merely  another 
figure  for  plus  sudoris;  the  labor 
of  writing  well  is  like  a  burden 
under  which  the  bearer  sweats. 
—  veniae  minus :  i.e.,  it  is  less  easy 
to  win  a  favorable  judgment  in 
comedy  than  in  tragedy,  precisely 
because  it  deals  with  ordinary  life, 
so  that  each  hearer  can  judge  for 
himself  of  the  correctness  of  the 
picture.  —  Plautus  :  the  unfavor- 
able judgment  here  expressed  is 
repeated,  from  a  slightly  different 
point  of  view,  in  A.  P.  270  ff.  It 
is  not  without  justification,  but  it  is 
one-sided ;  the  merits  of  Plautus 
as  a  writer  of  comedy  were  not  of 
a  kind  to  appeal  to  Horace. 

171-172.  quo  pacto  :  i.e.,  'how 
poorly.'  —  tutetur :  '  plays  the 
part,'  transferred  from  the  actor  to 
the  writer ;  the  meaning  is  that  the 
characters  are  not  harmoniously 
and  consistently  drawn,  as  they 
are  in  the  Greek  originals  and  in 
Terence.  The  judgment  rests 
upon  too  narrow  a  conception  of 
art  in  comedy.  —  ephebi,  patris, 
lenonis:  standing  figures  in  the 


153 


2,  I,  172] 


HORATI 


ut  patris  attend,  lejiorjts  ut  insidiosi, 
quantus  sit  Dossennus  edacibus  in  parasitis, 
quam  non  adstricto  percurrat  pulpita  socco. 

175    Gestit  enim  nummum  in  loculos  demittere,  post  hoc 
securus  cadat  an  recto  stet  fabula  talo. 
Quern  tulit  ad  scaenam  ventoso  Gloria  curru, 
exanimat  lentus  spectator,  sedulus  inflat ; 
sic  leve,  sic.parvum  est,  animum  quod  laudis  avarum 

180    subruit  aut  reficit !     Valeat  res  ludicra,  si  me 
palma  negata  macrum,  donata  reducit  opimum. 
Saepe  etiam  audacem  fugat  hoc  terretque  poctam, 


comedy  ;  the  adjectives  used  with 
each  are  also  traditional. 

173.  Dossennus:  a  character  in 
the  fabula  Atellana,  resembling  in 
general   the   parasite   of  Plautus. 
The  sense  of  the  line  is  not  quite 
clear,  but  appears  to  be,  '  what  a 
Dossennus  he  is  in  the  part  of  the 
hungry  parasite,'  i.e.,  '  how  much 
his  parasites  resemble  the  Dossen- 
nus of  popular  farces,  rather  than 
the  more  artistic  figure  of  the  par- 
asite in  the  New  Comedy.' 

174.  non    adstricto:      'loosely 
tied,' '  careless.'     This  is  a  general 
expression,  summarizing  vss.  170- 

173- 

175-176.  'For  he  was  careless 
and  negligent  (vs.  167),  interested 
only  in  the  price  he  got  for  his 
play.'  —  post  hoc:  after  he  was 
paid.  The  leading  actor  (dominus 
gregis)  was  the  agent  of  the  giver 
of  the  games  in  buying  the  play 
from  the  writer.  —  securus  :  care- 
less. —  stet :  a  technical  word  for 


holding  a  place  on  the  stage,  but 
here  brought  back  to  its  original 
meaning  by  ncto  talo,  'stands 
firm,'  '  stands  upright.' 

177.  The  thought  turns  from 
Plautus  to  the  condition  of  the 
stage  and  dramatic  writing. — 
Gloria:  cf.  Sat.  i,  6,  23,  fnlgente 
.  .  .  Gloria  currn.  —  ventoso :  as 
fickle  as  the  wind;  cf.  Epist.  i, 
19,  37,  -ventosae  plebis. 

178-181.  The  same  thought  is 
here  expressed  three  times ;  first 
by  exanimat  (takes  away  his 
breath)  and  inflat  (causes  him  to 
take  a  full  breath  of  self-satisfac- 
tion) ;  second,  by  subruit  and 
reficit  (of  pulling  down  and  rebuild- 
ing an  edifice)  :  and  third,  in 
macrum  and  opimum.  —  lentus : 
unresponsive,  exactly  as  in  Sat. 
I,  9,  64,  lent  is  si  ma  brace  hi  a. — 
valeat :  i.e.,  '  I  do  not  care  for  it.' 

182.  etiam:  with  audacem ;  'even 
one  who  might  venture  to  take 
the  risk  of  failure  is  daunted  by 


154 


F*?u 

«*ri;  C2";I93C 

quod  numero  plures,  virtute  et  honore  minores,  jck 
indocti  stolidique  et  depugnare  parati, 
185    si  discordet  eques,  media  inter  carmina  poscunt    2* 
aut  ursum  aut  pugiles  ;  his  nam  plebecula  gaudet. 
Verum   equitis    quoque   iam    migravit    ab "  aure    vo- 

luptas 
omnis  ad  incertos  oculos  et  gaudia  vana. 


Quattuor  aut  plures  aulaea  premuntur  in  horas, 
190    dum  fugiunt  equitum  turmae  peditumque  catervae; 
mox  trahitur  manibus  regum  fortuna  retortis,    y  y  $ 
esseda  festinant,  pilenta,  petorrita,  naves, 
captivum  portatur  ebur,  captiva  Corinthus. 


the  poor  taste  of  the  audience  that 
is  to  judge  him.' 

184.  indocti  stolidique  :  i.e., '  in- 
capable either  by  training  or  by 
natural   sensitiveness   of    judging 
correctly.'  —  depugnare  parati :  not 
literally,  but  '  prepared  to  maintain 
their  position.' 

185.  eques:  used  also  in  Sat.  I, 
10,  76,  of  the  more  cultivated  part 
of  the  audience,  with  a  reference  to 
the  law  of  Otho  reserving  fourteen 
rows  behind  the  senators  for  the 
equites. 

1 86.  aut   ursum     aut    pugiles: 
shows  suited  to  their  taste.     The 
Hecyra  of  Terence  was  twice  driven 
from    the   stage    by   the   superior 
attraction  of  boxers  and  a  rope- 
dancer  and  a  rumored  gladiatorial 
show,  and  it  is  to  this  well-known 
bit  of  literary  history  that  Horace 
is  alluding. 

187.  equitis  quoque :  even   the 
better  portion  of  the  audience  has 


been  led  astray  by  the  spectacular 
drama. 

1 88.  incertos :   shifting,   chang- 
ing from  one  object  to  another.  — 
vana :  the  pleasures  which   come  / 
from  seeing  mere  shows  are  empty, 
in  comparison  with  the  more  last- 
ing pleasure  of  good  poetry. 

189.  premuntur:    kept    down; 
the  curtain  was  lowered,  instead  of 
being  raised,  as  in  a  modern  theater. 

190.  A  battle  was  represented 
on  the  stage. 

191-193.  The  triumphal  proces-  . 
sion  after  the  battle.  —  manibus : 
.  .  .  retortis:  as  captives,  with  their 
hands  bound  behind  their  backs. — 
regum  fortuna :  kings,  once  favor- 
ites of  fortune,  now  enslaved  ;  the 
phrase  is  epic,  like  virtus  Scipia- 
dae,  Sat.  2,  i,  72. — The  details 
that  follow  are  merely  suggestive 


of  the  elaborateness  of  some  trium- 


phal  processions,  — '  chariots,  car- 
riages,  wagons,  models  of  ships  or 


2,  I,  194] 


HORATI 


Si  fflcet  in  terris,  rideret  Democritus,  seu 
195    diversum  confusa  genus  panthera  camelo, 

sive  elephas  albus  vulgi  converteret  ora; 

spectaret  populum  ludis  attentius  ipsis 

ut  sibi  praebentem  nimio  spectacula  plura ; 

scriptores  autem  narrare  putaret  asello 
200    fabellam  surdo.     Nam  quae  pervincere  voces 

evaluSre  sonum,  referunt  quem  nostra  theatra  ? 

Garganum  mugire  putes  nemus  aut  mare  Tuscum ; 


figureheads,  statues   of  ivory  and 
Corinthian  bronze.' 

194.  Democritus :    by   tradition 
the   'laughing   philosopher';    the 
sense   therefore   is    '  here    would 
indeed    be    a    spectacle    for    the 
philosopher  who  found,  in  the  fol- 
lies  of  men   matter  for   laughter 
rather  than  for  reproof.' 

195.  The  giraffe,  cameloparda- 
liSj  was   supposed   to  be  a  cross 
between  a  camel   and  a  panther 
(pard),    and    the    confusion    of 
expression    here    is   intended    to 
symbolize  the  mixture.     The  ex- 
pression is,  in  fact,  so  confused  that 
it    is   not   clear    whether    Horace 
means  diversum  genus  to  be  an 
accus.  with  confusa  {Sat.  I,  6,  74, 
susfiensi  loculos)  or  an  appositive 
of  panthera.     The  first  giraffe  seen 
in  Rome  was  brought  over  for  Cae- 
sar's Alexandrian  triumph  in  468.0: 

198.  nimio  .  .  .  plura:  much 
more ;  so,  frequently,  plus  niinio, 
e.g.,  Epist.  i,  10,  30. 

199-200.  scriptores:  of  such 
plays,  of  plays  in  which  the  spec- 


tacular element  greatly  exceeded 
the  poetical.  —  asello  .  .  .  surdo : 
the  proverbial  expression  surdo 
fabellam  narrare  (Ter.  Heaut. 
222,  nunc  surdo  narret  fabulani) 
is  strengthened  by  asello,  with  a  re- 
minder of  the  Greek  saying  ova> 
TIS  eXeyc  p.vOov  •  6  Se  TO,  WTO.  eKtVet, 
'  a  man  told  a  story  to  an  ass  ;  the 
ass  only  shook  his  ears.' 

201.  evaluere :    more   emphatic 
than  a  form  of  posse,  and  the  per- 
fect tense,  appealing  to  the  facts 
of  past  experience,  is   more   em- 
phatic in  a  sentence  that  implies  a 
negative,  than  the   present   tense 
would    be ;   'no  voices  have  ever 
had  (or  now  have)  power  enough 
to.   .  .  .' 

202.  Garganum  :  the  same  illus- 
tration,   from    the    noise    of    the 
wind  in  the  oak  forests  of  Garga- 
nus  (a    mountainous   promontory 
on  the  Adriatic  coast  not  very  far 
from  Horace's  early  home)  is  used 
in  Carm.  2,  9,  7,  and  references  to 
the  storms  of  the  Tuscan  sea  are 
frequent. 

56 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  i,  214 


tanto  cum  strepitu  ludi  spectantur  et  artes 
divitiaeque  peregrinae  !     Quibus  oblitus  actor 

205     cum  stetit  in  scaena,  concurrit  dextera  laevae. 

'  Dicit  adhuc   aliquid  ? '      '  Nil  sane.'      '  Quid  placet 

ergo  ? ' 

'  Lana  Tarentino  violas  imitata  veneno,' 
Ac  ne  forte  putes  me,  quae  facere  ipse  recusem, 
cum  recte  tractent  alii,  laudare  maligne, 

210    ille  per  extentum  funem  mihi  posse  videtur 
ire  poeta,  meum  qui  pectus  inaniter  angit, 
irritat,  mulcet,  falsis  terroribus  implet, 
ut  magus  et  modo  me  Thebis  modo  ponit  Athenis. 
Verum  age,  et  his,  qui  se  lectori  credere  malunt  ' 


203.  artes :  ironical ;  artes  and 
divitiae  are  together   the  antece- 
dent of  quibus,  and  therefore  refer 
especially  to  the  dress  of  the  act- 
ors, not  to  such  things  as  are  men- 
tioned in  vs.  193. 

204.  oblitus  :  also  ironical ;  lit., 
'smeared,'  i.e.,  loaded  down,  cov- 
ered up. 

207.  The  wool  of  Tarentum  was 
famous  and  the  dye  made  from 
the  murexQi  the  Gulf  of  Tarentum 
was  considered  second  only  to  the 
Tyrian.  —  violas  :  color  compari- 
sons in  poetry  are  to  be  regarded 
as  mere  suggestions.  —  veneno  : 
this  continues  the  ironical  tone. 

209.  maligne :  grudgingly,   un- 
generously,   the  sense  of  the  Eng- 
lish    malignant    is    not    in    the 
word. 

210.  per  extentum  funem  :   the 
expression  is  proverbial,  as  in  Eng- 


lish, of  an  act  which  requires  great 
skill  and  involves  danger. 

211.  meum:  by  putting  himself 
into  the  position  of  a  spectator  and 
hearer  Horace  is  able  to  express 
more  easily  his  admiration  for  the 
art   of  the  dramatist  and  to  dis- 
claim all  rivalry.  —  inaniter :  i.e., 
by  the  stage  illusions,  which  are 
unreal ;     to    be    taken   also   with 
irritat  and  mulcet. 

212.  falsis:  the  same  as  inaniter. 

213.  ut    magus:     to    be   taken 
with  the  rest  of  the  vs. ;  'and  like 
a  magician.   .  .  .'  —  Thebis,  Athe- 
nis :   the  scenes   of  tragedy,   like 
the   Oedipus    story,   and    of    the 
plays  of  the  New  Comedy. 

214  ff.  '  Turn  now  from  the  stage 
and  consider  the  difficulties  with 
which  poets  labor  who  write  for 
the  reading  public.' 

214.  et  his  :  these  also,  since  age 


157 


I,  2IS] 


HO  R  ATI 


215    quam  spectatoris  fastidia  ferre  superbi, 

curam  redde  brevem,  si  munus  Apolline  dignum 
vis  complere  libris  et  vatibus  addere  calcar, 
ut  studio  maiore  petant  Helicona  virentem. 
Multa  quidem  nobis  facimus  mala  saepe  poetae, 
ut  vineta  egomet  caedam  mea,  cum  tibi  librum 
sollicito  damus  aut  fesso,  cum  laedimur,  unum 
si  quis  amicorum  est  ausus  reprendere  versum, 
cum  loca  iam  recitata  revolvimus  irrevocati, 


prefixed  to  another  imperative  is 
not  usually  connected  with  it  by  et. 

216.  curam  redde :  a  direct  ad- 
dress to  Augustus  as  a  patron  of 
literature,  interested  in  all  forms 
of  poetry  and  founder  of  the  tem- 
ple of  Apollo,  with  which  the  two 
great  libraries,  of  Greek  and  of 
Latin  writings,  were  connected. 
The  words  are  carefully  chosen ; 
curam.  not  merely  interest ;  redde, 
give  as  something  due  to  them ; 
brevem,  since  Augustus  is  so  much 
occupied  with  other  cares,  vss. 
1-4.  —  munus  :  the  library  was  a 
gift  for  public  use.  The  general 
sense  is, '  if  you  wish  to  make  your 
gift  worthy  of  the  god  of  poetry  by 
filling  it  with  books  that  deserve 
such  preservation.1 — addere  calcar: 
to  set  spurs  to  without  any  sugges- 
tion of  'adding1;  the  phrase  is 
common  and  not  different  from 
admovere  calcar,  subdere  calcar. 

218.  Helicona:  as  the  home  of 
the  Muses.  The  line  is  entirely 
general,  merely  a  supplement  to 
addere  calcar. 


219.  quidem:    with   concessive 
effect ;    'it   is   quite  true   that  we 
poets   are  sometimes  childish   in 
our    expectations.1     The    comple- 
tion  of  the  thought  begins  with 
sed  tamen,  vs.  229. 

220.  ut  yineta  .  .  .  caedam:  the 
expression    is     evidently    prover- 
bial, of  saying  or  doing  something 
which  injures  one's  own  interests. 
It   does   not   occur    elsewhere  in 
this  form,  but  cf.  Tibull.  r,  2,  100, 
quid  rues  sis  uris  acerba  tuts  ?  and, 
for  the  literal  meaning,  Verg.  Eel. 
3,  10  f.,  cum  me  arbustum  videre 
Miconis  \  atque  mala  vitis  incidere 
fake  novellas. 

221.  sollicito  .  .  .  aut  fesso:  cf. 
the  humorously  exaggerated  care- 
fulness of  Horace,  when   he  was 
sending  a   copy  of  the   Odes   to 
Augustus,  Epist.  i,  13,  especially 
vs.  3,  si  validus,  si  laetus  erit. 

223.  The  line  refers  to  the  be- 
havior of  an  author  reading  his 
own  poetry  to  an  audience ;  when 
a  passage  pleases  him,  he  goes 
back  and  reads  it  over,  without 


'58 


EPISTVLAE 


cum  lamentamur,  non  apparere  labores 
225    nostros  et  tenui  deducta  poemata  filo, 

cum  speramus  eo  rem  venturam,  ut  simul  atque 
carmina  rescieris  nos  fingere,  commodus  ultro 
arcessas  et  egere  vetes  et  scribere  cogas. 
Sed  tamen  est  operae  pretium  cognoscere,  quales) 
230    aedituos  habeat  belli  spectata  domique 
virtus  indigno  non  committenda  poetae. 
Gratus  Alexandro  regi  magno  fuit  ille 
Choerilus,  incultis  qui  versibus  et  male  natis 


waiting  to  be  urged.  —  revolvimus : 
in  a  literal  sense,  of  the  turning 
back  of  the  scroll.  —  irrevocati: 
revocare  is  the  technical  word  for 
recalling  an  actor  or  a  reciter. 

224.  non  apparere:    i.e.,    'that 
the   labor  we   have   given  to  our 
work  is    not   sufficiently   appreci- 
ated ' ;  the  complaint  is  intention- 
ally put  in  a  form  which  reveals 
its  absurdity. 

225.  tenui  deducta  .  .  .  filo  :  'the 
fineness  and  subtlety  of  our  work.' 
The  figure  is  taken  from  spinning 
and  is  often  used,  e.g.,  Sat.  2,  i,  3  f. 

227.  commodus :    '  you   will   be 
so    obliging   as    to  .  .  .' — ultro : 
without  waiting  to  be  asked. 

228.  egere  vetes  :   i.e.,  l  save  us 
from   poverty."     The    two   verbs, 
vetes    and    cogas,    carry    on    the 
thought  of  ultro  and  suggest,  ironi- 
cally, the  picture  of  the  poet  indif- 
ferent   to    poetry   and    shrinking 
from  writing,  but  compelled  by  his 
patron     to     accept     wealth     and 
assume  the  task  of  writing. 


229.  sed  tamen :  taking  up  the 
thought  where  it  was  interrupted 
by  multa  quidem  .  .  .  facimus,  vs. 
219. — est  operae  pretium:* it  is 
worth  your  while.'  —  cognoscere  :  a 
rather    formal    word,   to   consider 
carefully,  '  to  investigate  the  ques- 
tion.' 

230.  aedituos :   '  temple  attend- 
ants,1 as  if  the  virtus  Augustiwct 
a   divinity.  —  habeat:    more    fully 
expressed   this   would   be   habere 
oporteat ;  the  direct  question  would 
have  been   in   the   subjv.,   quales 
aedituos    habeat     (should    have) 
virtus  tua. 

232-234.  The  story  is  that  Choe- 
rilus wrote  a  poor  poem  on  the 
exploits  of  Alexander  and  Was 
rewarded  by  him,  in  spite  of  the 
badness  of  the  poetry.  These  out- 
lines are  filled  in  by  the  Scholiast 
with  some  details  which  rather 
detract  from  the  aptness  of  the 
illustration.  If  they  are  authentic, 
Horace  has  intentionally  omitted 
them.  A  few  later  allusions  (Cur- 


159 


[*,  :,  234 


HORAT1 


rettulit  acceptos,  regale  nomisma,  Philippos. 

235    Sed  veluti  tractata  notam  labemque  remittunt 
atramenta,  fere  scriptores  carmine  foedo 
splendida  facta  linunt.     Idem  rex  ille,  poema 
qui  tam  ridiculum  tarn  care  prodigus  emit, 
edicto  vetuit  ne  quis  se  praeter  Apellem 

240    pingeret  aut  alius  Lysippo  duceret  aera 

fortis  Alexandri  vultum  simulantia.     Quodsi 
iudicium  subtile  videndis  artibus  illud 
ad  libros  et  ad  haec  Musarum  dona  vocares, 
Boeotum  in  crasso  iurares  aere  natum. 


tius,  8,  5,  8;  Auson.  Epist.  16,  3) 
show  that  the  story  became  tradi- 
tional.—  incultis :  from  lack  of 
art. — male  natis:  from  lack  of 
natural  ability.  —  rettulit  accep- 
tos :  i.e.,  *  put  them  down  in  his 
account  book  on  the  credit  side'; 
a  bookkeeping  term  used  ironi- 
cally. —  regale  nomisma :  because 
they  were  called  Philippi,  after 
the  name  of  the  king;  cf.  the 
'Napoleon.'  There  is  perhaps 
also  a  suggestion  that  Alexander 
'paid  like  a  prince.'  nomisma  is 
in  apposition  to  Philippos, 

235-237.  '  But  poor  poetry  really 
brings  discredit  upon  the  hero 
whose  deeds  it  celebrates.' — re- 
mittunt: 'give  off,'  leave  upon 
the  hand. — atramenta:  ink  or 
any  black  pigment. — fere:  often, 
not  '  generally,  usually.'  —  The 
comparison  ('  poor  poets  stain 
great  deeds,  as  ink  stains  the 
fingers')  is  good  enough  in  its 
essential  point  (linunt  —  notam 


labemque  remittunf),  but  is  dis- 
tinctly lame  in  the  details,  which 
by  no  means  correspond. 

237-238.  idem :  with  adversative 
force,  as  often. — tam,  tam:  these 
words  take  for  granted  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  details  of  the  story, 
as  do  ille  (232),  ille  (237). 

239-240.  edicto  vetuit  ne  quis : 
in  the  legal  style ;  cf.  Sat.  2,  3,  187. 
The  story  was  traditional  and  is 
alluded  to  by  Cicero  (ad  Fam.  5, 
12,  7)  and  told  by  Pliny  (H.  IV.  7. 
37,  125).  Apelles  and  Lysippus 
were  the  two  most  distinguished 
artists  of  the  period.  —  alius  Ly- 
sippo :  cf.  Epist.  I,  16,  20  ;  exactly 
equivalent  to  praeter  Apellem. 
—  duceret:  cast. — aera:  the  plur. 
is  significant;  bronzes,  i.e.,  bronze 
figures. 

242.  videndis  artibus :  'arts  that 
appeal  to  the  eye,'  painting  and 
sculpture ;  ablative,  Lane,  §  2266. 

244.  Boeotum:  gen.  plur.  with 
aere. — crasso:  proverbial  of  tl*t 


160 


EPISTVLAE 


I,  251 


250 


At  neque  dedecorant  tua  de  se  iudicia  atque 
munera,  quae  multa  dantis  cum  laude  tulerunt, 
dilecti  tibi  Vergilius  Variusque  poetae : 
nee  magis  express!  vultus  per  aenea  signa 
quam  per  vatis  opus  mores  animique  virorum 
clarorum  apparent.     Nee  sermones  ego  mallem 
repentes  per  humum,  quam  resjx>mponere  gesjas, 


atmosphere  of  Boeotia,  so  that  the 
name  of  the  country  had  become 
proverbial  for  dullness.  —  The  tra- 
dition which  Horace  is  here  follow- 
ing, that  Alexander  was  a  poor 
judge  of  poetry,  is  not  in  fact 
consistent  with  a  correct  inter- 
pretation of  the  Choerilus  story, 
which,  in  its  full  form,  is  meant  to 
represent  him  as  dealing  humor- 
ously and  good-naturedly  with  a 
poem  the  badness  of  which  he  fully 
understood.  A  similar  tradition, 
attributing  to  him  ignorance  of 
painting,  appears  in  an  anecdote 
told  by  Pliny  (ff.  N.  35,  10,  85) 
of  his  making  foolish  criticisms  in 
the  studio  of  Apelles.  Bothtradi- 
^ons  probably  came  from  Athenian 
witticisms,  extending  the  proverbial 
dullness  of  Boeotia  to  the  Mace- 
donian conqueror. 

245  ff.  '  But  you  do  not  need 
'his  warning,  as  your  patronage 
of  Vergil  and  Varius  shows.' 

245.  dedecorant .  .  .  iudicia:  t.e., 
'  do  no  discredit  to  your  selection 
of  them.' 

246.  munera  :  there  is  a  definite 
story  of  the  giving  of  money  to 
Vergil   when   he  read    the   sixth 


book  of  the  Aeneid  to  Augustus, 
and  he  left  a  considerable  fortune 
at  his  death,  which  must  have 
come  from  gifts.  Varius  also  re- 
ceived money  from  Augustus. — 
laude  :  credit,  honor,  not  '  praise ' 
from  the  recipients  of  the  gifts. 

247.  Vergil  died  in  19  B.C.,  and 
Varius  was  probably  not  living  at 
this  time,  though  the  date  of  his 
death  is  not  known. 

248.  expressi:     the    figure    is 
taken   from   the   shaping  of  wax 
or  clay.  —  vultus :  l  the  expression 
of  the  face.' 

250  ff.  'I  too  would  join  in  re- 
cording your  deeds  if  only  my 
powers  were  equal  to  the  task.' 

250-251.  sermones  .  .  .  repentes 
per  humum:  this  often-quoted 
phrase  expresses  Horace's  habitual 
attitude  toward  the  Satires  and 
Epistles  ;  they  are  Talks,  inspired 
only  by  a  Musa  pedeslris  (Sat.  2, 
6,  17).  It  was  in  the  Epodes  and 
the  Odes  that  he  felt  himself  to 
be  a  poet.  —  res  ...  gestas  :  an 
historical  epic  after  the  manner  of 
Ennius.  The  title  of  the  work 
might  have  been  Res  Gestae 
Augusti. 


HOR.  EP.  —  II 


161 


2,  I,  252] 


HORATI 


terrarumque  situs  et  flumina  dicere  et  arces 
montibus  impositas  et  barbara  regna,  tuisque 
auspiciis  totum  confecta  duella  per  orbem, 
255    claustraque  custodem  pads  cohibentia  lanum, 
et  formidatam  Parthis  te  principe  Romam, 
si,  quantum  cuperem,  possem  quoque :  sed  neque  parvum 
carmen  maiestas  recipit  tua,  nee  meus  audet 
rem  tentare  pudor,  quam  vires  ferre  recusent. 
Sedulitas  autem,  stulte  quern  diljgit,  urget, 


257.  si  ...  possem :  the  prota- 
sis  of  malletn,   vs.    250.  —  quan- 
tum cuperem :    the    thought    was 
traditional  in  rhetorical  criticism. 
Cf.  also  ciipidum  in  the  similar 
passage,  Sat.  2,  i,  12. 

258.  maiestas  .  .  .  tua:  not,  of 
course,  as  a  title,  but  with  some- 
thing of  formality.  —  recipit :  ad- 
mit, permit. 

259.  rem  tentare:    'to  attempt 
a  task,'  not  quite  as  in  vs.  164.  — 
pudor :    the  abstract  for  the  con- 
crete, to  balance  maiestas.  —  The 
clauses    repeat    and   amplify   the 
thought  of  quantum  cuperem  pos- 
sein ;  '  I  do  not  wish  to  offer  you 
a  poor  song,  which  is  all  that  I  am 
able  to  do,  and  I  am  not  able  to 
attempt  a  great   poem,  which  is 
what     I     should     wish    to    give 
you.' 

260.  sedulitas :  officiousness^  an 
ill-regulated  desire  to  please;  cf. 
sedulus,  Epist.   I,  13,  5.  —  stulte  : 
with  urget;   'is  foolish  in  laying 
a  burden  upon  the  very  person  he 
desires  to  please.' 


252-253.  These  details  evi- 
dently refer  to  campaigns  in  coun- 
tries little  known  to  the  public 
and  deserving  particular  descrip- 
tion. The  phrase  arces  montibus 
impositas  points  to  the  campaigns 
of  Drusus  and  Tiberius  in  the 
valleys  of  the  Alps  against  the 
Vindelici,  which  were  carried  on  in 
15-14  B.C.,  and  which  Horace  had 
already  celebrated  in  Carm.  4,  4 
and  14,  at  the  request  of  Augustus. 

254.  duella:  the  epic  word.    In 
these  lines,  as  in  the  similar  pas- 
sage in  Sat.  2,  i,  12-15,  Horace, 
in  the  very  act  of  professing  his 
inability  to  write  an  epic,  indulges 
in  a  bit  of  epic  description. 

255.  claustra :    the    temple   of 
Janus    was    closed    by   Augustus 
twice    before     this    Epistle    was 
written,  in  29  and  in  25  B.C.,  and 
a  third  time  at  some  later  date.  — 
custodem  pacis  :  the  phrase  is  not 
quite  precise ;  Janus  guards  peace 
within  his  closed  doors. 

256.  Parthis:  cf.  Epist.  I,  12, 
37,  note. 


162 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  i,  270 


praecipue  cum  se  numeris  commendat  et  arte; 


discit  eninvcitkis  meminitque  libentius  illud, 
quod  quis  de\ridet,  quam  quod  probat  et  veneratur. 
Nil  moror  oflicium,  quod  me  gravat,  ac  neque  ficto 

265    in  peius  vultu\proponi  cereus  usquam, 
nee  prave  factis  decorari  versibus  opto, 
ne  rubeam  pingui  donatus  munere  et  una 
cum  scriptore  meo  capsa  porrectus  operta 
deferar  in  vicum  vendentem  tus  et  odores 

270    et  piper  et  quidquid  chartis  amicitur  ineptis. 


261.  praecipue:    'this   is   espe- 
cially true  of  poetry,  because  poor 
verses  stick  in  the  memory.' 

262.  discit :  the  subject  is  to  be 
supplied  from  the  next  clause. 

264-265.    oflicium:  =  sedulitas. 

—  gravat :  =  urget.  —  ficto :  shaped. 

—  in  peius  :  t.e.,  ( by  a  poor  artist, 
who  would  misrepresent  my  fea- 
tures, as  I,  if  1  tried  to  write  an 
epic,    might     misrepresent     your 
deeds.'  —  cereus:    wax  was  used 
for    portrait  busts,   as    for  masks 
(imagines)  of  distinguished  ances- 
tors.   Cf.  expressi)  vs.  248. 


266.  decorari :  ironical.  —  There 
is  an  implied  comparison ;  '  as   I 
should  not  be  pleased  by  a  poor 
portrait  of  myself,  so  I  should  not 
care  to  be  described  in  bad  verses.' 

267.  pingui :  stupid,  as  in  Sat. 
2,  6,  14. 

268.  scriptore   meo:    'the   man 
who  wrote  about  me,'  '  my  eulo- 
gist.'—  capsa    porrectus:    like    a 
corpse  in  a  coffin. 

269.  vicum  vendentem  tus  :  the 
•vicus  Tuscus,  with  a  pun  on  tus 
—  tuscus. 


The  subject  matter  of  this  Epistle  is  so  general  and  there  are  so  few 
allusions  to  public  matters  that  the  date  cannot  be  fixed  with  certainty. 
It  is  clear  that  so  elaborate  a  renunciation  of  poetry  cannot  have  been 
written  during  the  period  from  17  B.C.  to  13  B.C.,  when  Horace  was 
writing  the  Carmen  Saeculare  and  the  Fourth  Book  of  the  Odes.  There 
is  nothing  to  show  that  it  might  not  have  been  composed  after  13  B.C., 
but  the  general  tone,  in  which  it  much  resembles  Epist,  i,  I,  and  the 

163 


2, 2]  HORATI 

difficulty  of  supposing  that  Horace  twice  publicly  announced  his  inten- 
tion of  giving  up  lyrical  poetry,  makes  the  earlier  date,  20-18  B.C.,  more 
probable. 

For  the  young  Julius  Fionas,  see  Introd.  to  Epist.  1,3.  He  was  still 
in  the  suite  of  Tiberius  and  had  apparently  been  long  absent  from 
Rome. 

'  Did  you  ever  buy  a  slave,  my  dear  Florus,  and  find  yourself  pre- 
vpnted  from  complaining  of  his  faults  by  the  fact  that  the  dealer  had 
expressly  mentioned  them  ?  Then  you  must  not  complain  of  not 
hearing  from  me,  for  I  warned  you  that  I  never  answer  letters.  And  in 
spite  of  this,  you  call  on  me  for  more  Odes  !  Do  you  remember  that 
story  of  the  soldier  of  Lucullus  ?  Some  thief  stole  his  savings  and  in  a 
rage  he  went  off  and  stormed  a  castle  and  got  honor  and  more  money. 
But  when  the  general,  with  most  flattering  words,  invited  him  to  lead 
another  storming  party,  he  declined  with  thanks  and  advised  the  gen- 
eral to  get  some  other  man  who  had  just  lost  his  purse.  That  is  just 
my  attitude.  I  lost  my  purse  at  Philippi  and,  in  a  rage,  I  stormed 
the  castle  of  poetry.  But  once  is  enough  ;  I  am  taking  my  ease  now. 
There  are  plenty  of  reasons  for  not  writing.  In  the  first  place,  you  all 
ask  for  different  things.  And  then,  how  can  one  write  in  Rome,  where 
all  is  confusion  ?  Nor,  for  another  reason,  do  I  like  the  mutual  admira- 
tion clubs,  which  1  should  have  to  join.  And  5t  is  no  easy  matter, 
either,  to  write  really  good  poetry. 

'  The  fact  is  that  I  have  turned,  as  I  said  once  before,  from  lyrics  to 
philosophy,  and  am  trying  to  learn  the  secrets  of  true  living.  I  am  con- 
sidering the  nature  of  possession  and  how  it  differs  from  use  and  how 
transient  it  is,  at  the  best.  I  am  trying  to  practice  the  doctrine  of  the 
Golden  Mean  and  to  become  both  better  and  happier,  as  I  grow 
older.' 

In  this  Epistle,  as  in  Epist.  2,  I,  the  letter  form  is  used  at  the  be- 
ginning with  considerable  skill,  and  something  of  the  personal  tone  is 
maintained  for  perhaps  fifty  lines.  But  from  that  point  the  epistle  be- 
comes a  versified  essay,  first,  on  the  writing  of  poetry  and,  second, 
on  philosophy.  The  latter  part  contains  nothing  that  Horace  had 
not  said  before,  though  it  is  here  expressed  in  new  forms,  but  the 
strictures  upon  the  state  of  literature  in  Rome  are  always  interesting. 
The  humorous  opening  of  the  Epistle,  the  bit  of  autobiography,  and 
the  veiled  allusion  to  Propertius  are  perhaps  the  best  parts  of  the 
letter.  As  a  whole  it  is  scarcely  equal  to  the  other  Epistles  of  this 
Book. 

164 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  2,   11 


-fca*~~^j^\ 


Flore,  bono  claroque  fidelis  amice  Neroni, 
/si  quis  forte  velit  puerum  tibi  vendere  natum 
TirJure  vel  Gabiis  et  tecum  sic  agat :  '  Hie  et 
candidus  et  talos  a  vertice  pulcher  ad  imos 
fiet  eritque  tuus  nummorum  milibus  octo, 
verna  ministeriis  ,ad  nutus  aptus  eriles, 
^•litterulis  Graecis  imbutus,  idoneus 
cuilibet ;  aFgftlji  quidvis  imitaberis  udax; 
quin  etiam  canet  indoctum  sed  dulce  bibentiP^  ch^ 

Multa  fidem  promissa  levant,  ubi  plenius  aequo 
laudat  venales  qui  vult  extrudere  merces. 


1.  Flore,  Neroni:    cf.  Epist.  i, 
3,  1-2,  notes,  and  Epist.  i,  8,  2. 

2.  puerum:    slave,    not    'boy,' 
though  the  context  shows  that  he 
is  young. 

3.  Tibure  vel  Gabiis:  any  two 
Italian   towns ;    a  slave   born    in 
Italy,    not    a   foreign    captive.  — 
agat:  deal,  i.e.,  'present  his  pro- 
posal in  these  terms.' 

4.  candidus :  fair,  of  complex- 
ion. —  talos  a  vertice  :  proverbial 
like  the   English   'from  head  to 
foot.1 

5.  fiet  eritque :  legal  tautology, 
like   'to  have   and  to  hold,'  em- 
ployed here  to  give  an  air  of  defi- 
niteness  and  frankness  to  the  offer. 
— milibus   octo :    nearly  $400,  an 
ordinary  price   for  a   fairly  good 
slave.     Davus,  speaking  of  him- 
self as  a  cheap  slave,  says  he  was 
worth  $100.     The  price  named  is 
meant  to  be  attractive,  but  not  sus- 
piciously low. 


6.  verna:  a  house  slave,  not  a 
common  field  laborer.  —  ministe- 
riis :  dative  with  aptus. — ad  nutus : 
to  betaken  closely  with  ministeriis 
aptus,  almost  as  a  modifier ; 
'  quick  to  perform  his  duties  at  a  nod . ' 

7-8.  litterulis  .  .  .  imbutus : 
'  he  knows  a  little  Greek ' ;  the 
depreciatory  tone  is  suggested  by 
the  diminutive  and  expressed  in 
imbutus.  Cf.  Tac.  Dial.  19,  ele- 
mentis  studiorum  etsi  non  instruc- 
tus  at  certe  imbutus.  —  arti  cuili- 
bet :  there  is  a  description  in  Ter. 
Eun.  476  ff.  of  a  young  slave  who 
knows  literature,  wrestling,  and 
music.  —  argilla  .  .  .  uda :  the  fig- 
ure of  the  artist  making  his  clay 
model  is  suggested  by  arti. 

9.  quin  etiam :  i.e.,  '  in  fact  he 
already  knows  something  of  one 
art,  singing.'  —  indoctum :  this 
suggests  again  the  frank  man  who 
will  not  praise  too  highly  what  he 
offers  for  sale. 


165 


1 


2,12]  pT  HORATI 

V       \  ^ /r 

Res  urget  me  nulla,  meo  sum  pauper  in  acre.  > 
Nemo  hoc  mangonum  faceret  tibi,  non  temere  a  me  ''' 
quivis  Terret  idem.     Semel  hie  cessavit  et,    '  ^ 
in  sqalis  latuit  metuens  pendentis 
es  nummos,  excepta  nihil  te  si  fu£!  laedat, 


ferat  pretium  poenae  securus  ;  opinor 
prudens  emisti  vmosum  ;  dicta  tibi  est  lex  ; 
insequeris  tamen  hunc  et  lite  moraris  iniqua  ? 


12.  res :  pressure,  necessity.  — 
meo  ...  in  acre :    in  distinction 
from  aes  alienurn ;  the  words  ex- 
plain the  first  part  of  the  line ;  '  I'm 
not  rich,  but  I  have  no  debts.' 

13.  hoc  faceret:    'would  make 
you  such  an  offer  as  this.'  —  non 
temere :  '  not  without  some  special 
reason.' 

14-15.  This  is  the  point  of  the 
whole,  dropped  in  at  the  end  as 
a  matter  of  no  importance,  yet 
distinctly  mentioned  lest  the  con- 
cealment should  invalidate  the 
bargain.  —  cessavit:  cf.  Sat.  2,  7, 
100,  nequam  et  cessator  Davus. 
This  is  the  mildest  possible  way 
of  saying  that  the  young  slave 
shirks  his  work  whenever  he  can  ; 
'  it  is  a  fact  that  he  once  lingered 
about  his  work  and  then,  fearing  a 
a  whipping,  hid  himself.'  So  in 
Plaut.  M.  G.  582  f.  the  slave  says 
nam  iam  aliquo  aufugiam  et  me 
occultabo  aliquot  dies,  \  dum  haec 
consilescunt  turbae.  —  in  scalis : 
under  the  stairs ;  he  did  not  really 
run  away. — pendentis:  i.e.,  usu- 
ally hanging  on  the  wall,  ready  for 
use. 


16.  des  :  continuing  the  suppo- 
sition,  without  si;  'suppose  you 
hand  over  your  money.1  —  si  .  .  . 
laedat :  a  secondary  condition,  with 
des;   'taking    it    for   granted,   of 
course,    that    you    find    nothing 
else  objectionable.'  —  excepta  .  .  . 
fuga  :  '  the  running  away   having 
been  distinctly  mentioned.'    Exci- 
pere  is  the  technical  term  in  law  for 
mentioning  a  point  which  is  an ;  ex- 
ception' to  the  general  statement ; 
cf.  Sat.  2,  3,  285,  mentem,  nisi  liti~ 
giosus,  exciperet  dominus,  cum  ven- 
deret. 

17.  poenae  securus :  without  fear 
of  penalty,  because  he  had  com- 
plied with  the  law  in  mentioning 
the  slight  tendency  to  '  shirk.' 

18.  prudens:  deliberately, ' with 
your  eyes  open.'  —  lex :  the  state- 
ment which  the  law  requires,  semel 
.    .    .   cessavit,    not    the    written 
'  law.' 

19.  insequeris,    moraris:     'are 
you  pursuing  him,  trying  to  hold 
him?'     The  present  tense  carries 
the  reader  over  from  the  story  to 
its  application  ;  this  is  a  condensed 
way  of  saying  '  would  you  make 


1 66 


EPISTVLAE      V  [2,2,32 

zo      Dixi  me  pigrum  profibiscentijibi,  dixi 

talibus  officiis  prope  mancum,  ne  mea  saevus 

iurgares  ad  te  quod  epistula  nulla  rediret. 

Quid  turn  profeci  mecum  facientia  iura 

si  tamen  attentas  ?     Quereris  super  hoc  etiam,  quod 

25      expectata  tibi  non  mittam  carmina  mendax. 

Luculli  miles  collecta  viatica,  multis  i/v 

>aerumnis,  lassus  dum  noctu  stertit,  ad  assem 
perdiderat,  post  hoc  vehemens  lupus  et  sibi  et  hosti 
iratus  pariter,  ieiunis  'dentibus  acer, 

30      praesidiumjregaje  loco  deiecit,  ut  aiunt, 
summe  munito  et  multarum  divite  rerum. 
Clarus  ob  id  factum  donis  ornatur  honestis 


a  fuss  about  your  bargain  and 
threaten  a  suit  ?  Yet  that  is  exactly 
what  you  are  doing  to  me,  though 
I  warned  you  plainly.' 

20.  dixi,  dixi :    '  I  was  just  as 
plain  in  my  warnings  as  the  seller 
of  the  slave  in  my  little  story.'  — 
proficiscenti :  on  his  journey  with 
Tiberius. 

It  is  extremely  characteristic  of 
Horace  to  go  through  all  the  de- 
tails of  the  story,  leaving  the  appli- 
cation to  the  end.  Compare  the 
detailed  description  of  Tigellius, 
Sat.  i,  3,  2-19,  the  point  of  which 
is  not  reached  till  vs.  24. 

21.  talibus  officiis :  letter  writing 
and  other  friendly  offices ;  dative 
with  mancum,  which  is  a  strong 
word  for  haud  aptus,  inutilis. 

23.  profeci :  i.e., '  what  good  has 
my  plain  warning  done?'  —  me- 
cum facientia:  cf.  Epist.  2,  i,  68. 


24.  super  hoc  etiam:  'in  addi- 
tion to  all  this,' '  you  even  go,  so 
far,  besides.' 

25.  mendax:       'breaking      my 
promise';   cf.  Epist.  i,  7,  2. 

26.  Luculli:   commander  in  Ci- 
licia    against    Mithridates,    74-67 
B.C.     The  story  is  not  told  else- 
where. — viatica :  properly i  travel-, 
ing    money,'    then    any    kind    of 
allowance,  from  which  the  soldier 
had  saved  what  he  could. 

27.  ad  assem :  i.e.,  all  of  it,  '  to 
a  penny.' 

29.  dentibus :  with  reference  to 
lupus. 

30-31.  regale:  i.e.,  of  Mithri- 
dates.—  ut  aiunt:  with  the  next 
line,  giving  the  authority  of  the 
story  teller  for  the  strong  expres- 
sions summe,  multarum  divite. 

32.  donis  .  .  .  honestis:  the 
various  insignia,  chains,  crowns, 


2,2,33]  HORATI       4* 

V 
accipit  et  bis  dena  super  sestertia  nummum. 

Forte  sub  hoc  tempus  castellum  evertere  praetor 
35      nescio  quod  cupiens  hortari  coepit  eundem 

verbis,  quae  timido  quoque  possent  addere  mentem : 
'  I  bone  quo  virtus  tua  te  vocat,  i  pede  fausto,   v  M 
grandia  laturus  meritorum  praemia.     Quid  stas^' 
Post  haec  ille  catus  quantumvis  rusticus  :  '  Ibit, 
40      ibit  eo,  quo  vis,  qui  zonam  perdidit,'  inquit. 


Romae  nutriri  mihi  contigit  atque  doceri 
iratus  Grais  quantum  riocuisset  Achilles. 


Adiecere  bopae  paullo  plus  artis  Athenae, 
scilicet  ut  vellem  curvo  dinoscere  rectum, 


medals,  that  were  given  for  con- 
spicuous bravery. 

33.  bis    dena  .  .  .  sestertia:    a 
little  less  than  $1000,  a  large  share 
of  the  booty  for  a  common  sol- 
dier.—  super:  adverb. 

34.  forte   sub    hoc  tempus:    a 
phrase  for  continuing  the  narra- 
tive, like  'it  happened  about  this 

.time.1  —  praetor:  in  the  old  sense, 
commander. 

35.  nescio  quod :   this  also  is  in 
the  narrative  style,  passing  over 
unimportant  details. 

36.  timido  quoque :    even  to  a 
coward.  —  nvmtem :    spirit,   pur- 
pose ;  this  is  an  unusual  sense  for 
mens. 

37.  pede  fausto :  a  rather  formal 
phrase,  almost  in  a  solemn  tone, 
as  if  the  gods  were  sure  to  favor 
the  undertaking. 

38.  grandia  .  .  .  praemia :  so  in 
Sat.  2,  i,  1 1  f.,  to  the  lofty  motives 


for  writing  about  Augustus,  Treba- 
tius  adds,  as  if  by  an  afterthought, 
mult  a  labor  um  praemia  laturus. 

39-40.  catus:  sharp;  a  collo- 
quial, almost  vulgar,  word  to  go 
with  quantumvis  rusticus.  —  ibit, 
ibit :  the  shrewd  soldier  mimics 
in  his  reply  the  lofty  tone  of  the 
repeated  /,  /  of  the  general's  exhor- 
tation.—  zonam:  'money  belt,' 
i.e., '  who  has  had  the  same  experi- 
ence that  I  had,1  vs.  27. 

41-54.  The  application  of  the 
story. 

41.  contigit:    Mt  was  my  good 
fortune  ' ;  this  corresponds  to  the 
soldier's  collecta  viatica.     For  the 
facts  compare  Sat.  i,  6,  76. 

42.  That  is,  he  learned  Greek 
and  read  the  Iliad. 

43-45-  '  My  good  fortune  was 
increased  by  the  opportunity  of 
studying  in  Athens.' — bonae  :  with 
Athenae.  —  artis :  education,  as  in 


1 68 


r^g 


0,  2,  52 


45      atque  inter  silvas  Academi  quaerere  ve 
Dura  sed  emovere  loco  me  tempora  grato, 
civilisque1  rudem  belli  tulit  aestus  in  arma 
Caesaris  Augusti  non  responsura  lacertis. 
Vnde  simul  primum  me  dimisere  Philippi, 

50      decisis  humilem  pennis  inopemque  paterni 
et  laris  et  fundi  paupertas  impulit  audax, 
ut   versus   facerem.      Sed    quod    non   desit    haben- 
tern 


.So/.  I,  6,  77. —  vellem:  desire, 
choose,  —  curvo,  rectum:  geometri- 
cal terms,  transferred  to  ethics, 
as  the  use  of  dinoscere  shows.  — 
inter  silvas :  the  olive  trees  of  the 
Academy.  This  spot  was  outside 
of  the  city  and  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  parks  about  Athens.  — 
Academi:  this  does  not  refer  to 
the  Academic  school,  to  which 
Horace  shows  no  inclination,  but 
only  to  the  place,  as  representative 
of  all  philosophy.  —  quaerere  ve- 
rum:  this  is  the  more  theoretical 
side  of  philosophy,  including  spec- 
ulations in  natural  philosophy. 

46-48.  'But  I  lost  my  chances, 
as  the  soldier  lost  his  money.1  — 
dura  .  .  .  tempora :  the  period  im- 
mediately after  the  death  of  Julius 
Caesar  in  March,  44  B.C.  —  civilis : 
with  aestus ;  cf .  furor  civilis, 
Carm.  4,  15,  18.  —  rudem  belli: 
=  tmbellem;  cf.  Epod.  i,  16. 
Horace  mentions  Brutus  as  his 
leader  only  in  Carm.  2,  7,  2,  quite 
casually,  and  in  Sat.  i,  7,  which 
dates  from  this  period  of  his  life. 


— non  responsura:  the  future  ex- 
presses the  idea  of  destiny.  — 
lacertis :  as  if  in  wrestling. 

49.  Philippi:  in  42  B.C.  Hor- 
ace returned  at  once  to  Rome,  not 
continuing  the  contest,  as  some  of 
his  friends  did,  by  joining  the 
army  of  the  younger  Pompey. 

.51.  et  laris  et  fundi :  with  ino- 
pem.  The  two  words  together 
stand  for  the  estate  near  Venusia, 
which  was  probably  confiscated 
and  assigned  to  some  veteran  of 
the  army  of  Augustus.  —  audax : 
corresponding  to  vss.  28-29,  vehe- 
mens  lupus. 

52.  ut  versus  facerem :  this  cor- 
responds to  the  soldier's  exploit, 
vss.  30-31.  But  Horace  does  not, 
either  here  or  elsewhere,  tell  how 
his  writing  brought  him  relief  from 
poverty,  except  indirectly,  through 
his  acquaintance.  There  is  no 
reason  to  suppose  that  an  author 
received  a  royalty  from  the  sale 
of  his  works.  —  quod  non  desit  ha- 
bentem:  this  is  the  modest  equiva 
lent  of  vss.  32-33. 


169 


2-  2,  53] 


HORATI 


55 


60 


quae  poterunt  unquam  satis  expurgarc  cicu 
ni  melius  dormire  putem  quam  scribere  versus? 
Singula  de  nobis  anni  praedantur  euntes, 
eripuere  ipcps,  venerem,  convivia,  ludum, 
tendunt  CTt0it'cfidere  poemata.     Quid  faciam 
Denique  non  omnes  eadem  mirantur 
Carmine  tu  gaudes,  hie  delectatur 
ille  Bionei*  sermonibus  et  sale  nigro^^ 
Tres  mihi  convivae  prope  dissentire  videntur, 


53.  poterunt    .    .    .    expurgare: 
i.e., '  what  possible  remedy  can  cure 
his  feverish  madness  ? '  —  cicutae : 
hemlock,  which  was  used  not  only 
as  a  poison,  but  also  in  smaller 
doses  as  a  cure  for  fever. 

54.  dormire:     cf.   Sat.  2,  I,  7, 
where  the  word  is  used  exactly  as 
here. 

55.  The  application  of  the  anec- 
dote of  the   soldier  to   Horace's 
own  history  and  circumstances  is 
carried  out  into  humorous  detail 
and  is  not  to  be  taken  seriously. 
Cf.    the  equally  exaggerated  and 
humorous  explanation  of  his  choice 
of   Satire   in   Sat.    i.    10,   40-47. 
From    this    point,    however,    the 
reasoning  becomes  more  serious. 
—  singula :   specified   in  the  next 
line.      This  line  is  an  expression 
of  the  feeling  of  the  middle-aged 
man.     The  thought  is  repeated  in 
A.  P.  175-176. 

56.  Cf.  Epist.  i,  7,  26-28,  where 
the  losses  that  come  with  middle 
age  are  described  somewhat  more 
fully. 

57.  tendunt:  the  present  tense 


is  emphatic ;  '  they  are  now  going 
on  to  take.  .  .  .'  —  extorquere : 
'against  my  will.' — quid  faciam 
vis  ?  i.e.,  '  what  can  I  do  but  sub- 
mit ? '  Greenough  well  compares 
qite  vottlez-vous  ? 

58.  denique :  introducing  a  new 
point,  but  not  the  final  one ;  then, 
too.  This  is  a  not  uncommon 
use. 

59-60.  carmine:  lyric  poetry, 
the  Odes. — iambis :  iambic  poems 
of  satirical  tone,  like  many  of  the 
Epodes.  —  Bioneis  :  Bion  was  a 
philosopher  of  the  third  century, 
of  a  biting  wit,  so  that  he  became 
a  type  of  the  caustic  satirist.  It 
is  quite  unlikely  that  Horace  was 
influenced  by  him  ;  at  the  most  it 
was  only  in  his  earliest  satires. 
His  name  is  used  here  only  as  a 
general  descriptive  term.  —  ser- 
monibus :  satires.  —  sale  nigro : 
coarse  black  salt,  which  would 
make  strong  brine.  The  figure  is 
often  used,  e.g.,  Sal.  i,  10,  3. 

61.  prope :  with  the  whole  sen- 
tence or  with  videntur,  not  with 
dissentire ;  '  if  you  have  only  three 


170 


KP1STVLAE 


IX  2.  73 


poscentes  vario  multum  diversa  palato. 

Quid  dem  ?  Quid  non  dem  ?  Renuis  tu,  quod  iubet  alter, 

quod  petis,  id  sane  est  invisum  acidumque  duobus. 

Praeter  cetera,  me  Romaene  poemata  censes 

scribere  posse  inter  tot  curas  totque  labores  ? 

Hie  sponsum  vocat,  hie  auditum  scripta, 

omnibus  officiis,  cubat  hie  in  colle  Quirini, 

hie  extreme  in  Aventino,  visendus  uterque ; 


intervalla  vides  humane  commoda.     Verum 


— "    ,/• 


purae  sunt  plateae,  nihil  ut  meditantibus  obstet 
Festinat  calidus  mulis  gerulisqiie  redemptor, 
torquet  nunc  lapidem  mine  ingens  machina  tigrrtim, 


guests,   it   is   almost  certain  that 
they  will  differ.' 

62.    multum:  with  diversa. 

64.  acidum :     maintaining    the 
figure  of  guests  at  the  table. 

65.  praeter  cetera  :  still  another 
reason,  vss.  65-86,  for  not  comply- 
ing with  the  expectation  of  Florus 
that  he  should  send  him  poems. 
For   the   general   thought,   which 
was  habitual  with  Horace,  cf.  Sat. 
2,  6,  23-39. 

67.  sponsum:  cf.  Sat.  2,  6,23, 
Romae    sponsor  em    me   rapis.  — 
auditum:  i.e.,  to  a  recitation,  as 
in  Sat.  I,  4,  23. 

68.  cubat:  is  lying  ill]  cf.  Sat. 
1,9,  18. 

70.  intervalla  :  the  distance 
would  be  somewhere  between 
one  mile  and  two,  but  Horace  is 
not  thinking  of  precise  measure- 
ments ;  he  names  the  two  hills 
which  were  on  opposite  sides  of 
the  city,  by  way  of  saying  f  clear 


across  the  whole  town.1  —  humane 
commoda:  so  in  colloquial  Latin, 
misere  miser,  inepte  stultus,  and 
frequently  an  adjective  is  strength- 
ened by  an  adverb  of  like  stem  or 
meaning ;  instead  of  either  Hu- 
mana, '  human,  suited  to  a  man,' 
or  commoda,  '  convenient,'  the  two 
are  united  into  the  single  ironical 
phrase,  '  convenient  for  a  man.' 
70-71.  '  But  perhaps  you  will 
say  that  .  .  .' ;  as  if  put  in  by 
some  other  person,  who  said  '  you 
can  be  thinking  over  a  poem 
(meditantibus)  as  you  go.'  — 
purae :  empty,  clear  of  obstacles 
which  would  prevent  thinking. 

72.  festinat :  the  answer  begins, 
as  often,  without  an  adversative 
particle,  as  though  a  mere  state- 
ment of  facts  supplied  a  sufficient 
answer.  —  calidus:  hurrying;  this 
continues  the  thought  of  festinat, 
as  a  predicate. 

73.  torquet:    twists   up,  winds 


171 


2,  74] 


V 


75 


HO  R  ATI 


80 


tristia  robustis  luctantur  funera  plaustris, 
hac  rabiosa  f ugit  canis,  hac  lutulenta  ruit  sus : 
i  nunc,  et  versus  tecum  meditare  canoros  ! 
Scriptorum  chorus  omnis  amat  nemus  et  fugit  urbes, 
rite  cliens  Bacchi  somno  gaudentis  et  umbra, 
tu  me  inter  strepitus  nocturnos  atque  diurnos 
vis  canere  et  contracta  sequi  vestigia  vatum  ? 
Ingenium,  sibi  quod  vacuas  desumpsit  Athenas 
et  studiis  annos  septem  dedit  insenuitqi._ 
libris  et  curis,  statua  taciturnius  exit 


up,  the  verb  being  chosen  because 
the  lifting  of  the  weight  is  done 
by  means  of  wheels  and  pulleys. 
74.  Cf.  Sat.  i,  6,  42  f.,  where 
the  noise  of  the  Forum  is  expressed 
in  the  same  way,  by  imagining  the 
meeting  of  funeral  processions  and 
heavy  wagons. 

76.  i  nunc  :  as  in  vs.  37.  —  For 
this  description  of  the  confusion 
of  an  ancient  city,  cf.  the  similar 
passage  in  Juv.  3,  245  ff.     Some 
attempts  were  made  to  control  the 
traffic,  but  .they  cannot  have  been 
very  effectual. 

77.  scriptorum :  poets,  as  cano- 
ros, canere,  and  vatum  show.  — 
chorus,  nemus:  these  words  sug- 
gest the  chorus  of  the  Muses  in 
the  sacred  grove. 

78.  rite:  with  cliens ',   'devoted 
to  Bacchus,  as  is  fit.'    This  is  the 
traditional   idea,   expressed   more 
fully  in  Epist.  I,  19,  i-n. 

80.  contracta:  i.e.,  'to  follow 
the  steep  and  narrow  path,'  the 
path  where  only  the  few  have  been 


able  to  tread.  The  same  thought 
is  in  Propert.  4,  i,  14,  non  datur 
ad  Musas  cur r ere  lota  -via. 

81-86.  '  Study  and  the  writing 
of  poetry  are  incompatible  with 
the  excitements  and  confusions  of 
active  life.  A  man  who  gives  him- 
self up  to  one  unfits  himself  for 
the  other.  The  student  in  the 
retirement  of  Athens  makes  a 
ridiculous  figure  in  affairs ;  I, 
when  I  am  living  in  the  midst 
of  the  distractions  of  Roman  life, 
must  not  expect  to  write  poetry.' 

81.  ingenium:  'a  man  of  abil- 
ity.'   This    is    probably   not    an 
allusion   to  some  definite  person 
(the    presents,    exit,    qnatit,    are 
general),   but,   to   make    it   more 
vivid,   an    air  of   definiteness    is 
given  to  it  by  Athenas  (the  typical 
spot  for  seclusion  and  study)  and 
by  annos  septem  (a  long  time) . 

82.  insenuit:    cf.   Epist.    i,   7, 
85,  amore  senescit  habendi. 

83.  libris  et    curis:    abl.,   like 
amore  in  the  passage  just  quoted. 


172 


EPISTVLAE 


90 


[2,  2,  91 

plerumque  et  risu  populum  quatit  ;  hie  ego  rerum  ,1^ 

fluctibus  in  mediis  et  tempestatibus  urbis 

verba  lyrae  motura  sqnum  conectere  digner?  I   ^^ 

Frater  erat  Romae  consult!  rhetor,  ut  alter    "^K^>^ 

alterius  sermone  meres  audiret  honores, 

Gracchus  ut  hie  illi,  foret  huic  ut  Mucius  ille. 

Qui  minus  argutos  vexat  furor  iste  poetas  ? 

Carmina  compono,  hie  elegos.     '  Mirabile  visu 


curae,  of  studies  in  philosophy,  as 
in  Carm.  3,  21,  15,  sapientium 
cur  as.  —  statua  :  a  proverbial  com- 
parison, which  is  used  also  in 
English.  —  taciturnius :  neut.  with 
ingenium.  —  exit  :  turns  out, 
'comes  out  at  the  end';  cf.  A. 
P.  22,  current 'e  rota  cur  urceus 
exit  ? 

84-86.  plerumque :  generally ; 
this  indicates  that  the  whole  com- 
parison is  in  general  terms.  —  hie : 
*  in  Rome,  not  in  vacuae  Athenae."1 
—  ego :  '  I,  not  an  ingenium . '  —  mo- 
tura sonum :  like  the  English,  'to 
wake  the  lyre.1  —  digner :  '  con- 
sider myself  fit,'  i.e.,  '  think  it 
possible  that  in  such  a  life  I 
should  still  be  capable  of  writing 
poetry.' 

87-105.  This  reason  for  not 
writing  poetry  —  the  fact  that  one 
must  join  the  mutual  admiration 
societies  in  Rome  —  is  introduced 
abruptly  by  an  allusion,  the  point 
of  which  does  not  appear  till  vs. 
90,  just  as  this  letter  begins  with 
a  story,  vss.  2-19,  the  point  of 
which  is  not  at  first  apparent. 

87.   consult!:    an  office  lawyer, 


a  jurist.  —  rhetor :  a  court  lawyer, 
a  pleader.  The  two  are  of  the 
same  general  profession,  but  in 
different  branches  of  it.  —  The 
•  construction  of  this  line  and  the 
next  is  harsh  and,  indeed,  doubt- 
ful. As  the  text  stands,  it  means 
'  there  was  an  orator  in  Rome  who 
was  the  brother  of  a  jurist,  a 
brother  so  close  that  each  heard 
from  the  other  nothing  but  com- 
pliments.' 

89.  Gracchus  :  both  the  Gracchi 
were     orators,     but    Gaius,     the 
younger  of    the    two,   was   espe- 
cially famous.     This  compliment 
was  paid  of  course  to  the  rhetor. 

—  Mucius  :  there  were  three  great 
jurists  named  Mucius  Scaevola. 

90.  qui   minus :    i.e.,  '  is  there 
any  reason  why  poets  should  not 
show  the  same  fraternal  spirit  ? ' 

—  argutos :  as  a  standing  epithet, 
clear-voiced. — vexat  furor:  these 
words  throw  off  the  ironical  tone 
of  the  story,  vss.  87-89. 

91.  carmina  :     lyric    poetry. — 
elegos :    elegy,   which   was    culti- 
vated at  this  time  in  Rome  with 
great  success,  so  that  it  was  prob- 


173 


HORATI 


vv 

2,  2,  92] 

caelatumque  novem  Musis  opus  !  '     Adspice  pni 
quanto  cum  fastu,  quanto  molimine  circum- 
spectemus  vacuam  Romanis  vatibus  aedem, 
95      mox  etiam,  si  forte  vacas,  sequere  et  procul  audi, 
quid  ferat  et  quare  sibi  nectaf  uterque  coronam. 
Caedimur  ertotidem  plagis  consumimus  hostem 
lento  Samnites  ad  lumina  prima  duello/— 

Otr>v 

.    j 

ably  the  most  admired  form  of 
poetry.  Horace  did  not  himself 
attempt  it.  The  allusion  here  is 
almost  certainly  to  the  elegiac  poet 
Propertius.  He  was  a  member  of 
the  Maecenas  circle,  yet  he  is  no- 
where mentioned  by  Horace,  who 
mentions  so  many  literary  friends. 
The  suspicion  that  this  silence  cov- 
ers some  hostility  is  strengthened 
by  the  great  differences  in  tempera- 
ment and  in  literary  ideals.  Com- 
mentators have  therefore  found 
veiled  allusions  to  Propertius  in 
various  passages  (Sat.  i,  10,  18, 
simius  iste ;  Sat.  I,  9)  ;  this  is  the 
most  distinct  and  probable. 

92.  caelatum :  the  poem  is 
praised  in  terms  which  would  be 
used  of  a  highly  ornamented  work 
of  art.  —  novem  Musis  :  dat.  of 
agent  with  caelatum;  the  poem 
is  so  perfect  that  all  the  Muses 
must  have  aided  in  the  writing  of 
it.  —  adspice:  the  two  poets  are 
pictured  standing  before  the  tem- 
ple of  Apollo,  exchanging  compli- 
ments. 

93-94.  fastu :  pride.  —  moli- 
mine :  a  rather  rare  word,  with  a 
suggestion  of  vastness  and  effort 


from  its  connection  with  ty 
moles ;  an  air  of  importance.  — 
circum-spectemus :  a  word  is  run 
over  from  one  line  to  the  next 
in  a  few  other  places;  Sat.  i,  2, 
62;  2,3,  117;  .4.7^.424.  There 
may  be  here  an  intentional  hit  at 
the  dignified  air  of  the  poets.  — 
vacuam :  the  temple  library  was 
'open  to  Roman  poets,1  as  if  in 
expectation  of  their  coming.  Cfl 
Epist.  2.  i.  216  f.  [*£*- 

95.  si  ...  vacas:  'if  you  are 
quite  at  leisure,1  and  have  nothing 
better  to   do.  —  sequere  :    to  the 
hall  where  the  poets  are  to  read 
their  verses   to  each  other.     No 
definite  place  is  thought  of;   the 
two  poets,  having  looked  proudly 
at  the   library   where  they   hope 
that  their  poems  are  to  be  pre- 
served, pass  on  to  a  hall  where 
they  hold  a  recitatio. 

96.  sibi  nectat :   each  is  weav- 
ing a  chaplet  for  himself  by  com- 
plimenting the  other  in  order  to 
be  complimented  in  turn. 

97-98.  A  condensed  compari- 
son ;  the  two  poets  are  like  two 
gladiators  and  exchange  poems  as 
the  gladiators  exchange  blows.  — 


174 


EPISTYLAR 
\*S 


VM 

meo  quis? 


Discedo  Alcaeus  puncto  illius,  ille  rneo  quis 

Quis  nisi  Callimachus  ?     Si  plus  adposcere  vi 

fit  Mimnermus,  et  optivo  cognomine  crescit. 

Multa  fero,  ut  placem  genus  irritabile  vatum, 

cum  scribo  et  supplex  populi  suffragia  capto;  ]A^^£-^^ / 

idem,  finitis  studiis  et  mente  recepta, 

obturem  patulas  impune  legentibus  aures. 

.  '      caedimur :    the  comparison  is  in/     Catullus    translated    one    of    his 

^/troduced    without    any    word    of      poems    (Catull.    66),    the    Coma 

comparison.  —  lento,    ad    lumina      Berenices. 


105 


prima":  i.e.,  '  we  keep  it  up  all  the 
afternoon,  till  the  first  lamps  are 
lit,'  till  darkness  separates  the  com- 
batants. —  Samnites  :  heavily  ar- 
mored gladiators,  who  would  fight 
long  without  injury,  until  both 
were  tired  out.  —  duello  :  here  in 
the  original  sense,  a  fight  between 
two  persons. 

99.  discedo :     i.e.,    'when    the 
combat  of  poems  is  over,  he  calls 
me    an    Alcaeus.1  —  puncto:    the 
vote    was   recorded   by   a   mark, 
punctum,  on  a  tablet,  which  was 
a    kind   of  tally    sheet.  —  quis  ? 
Horace's      pretended      hesitation 
suggests  that  he  does  not  know 
or  care  what  name  he  shall  use, 
but  will  call  the  other  poet  any- 
thing that  will  please  him  —  say, 
Callimachus. 

100.  Callimachus :      Propertius 
(5,   I,  64)   calls  himself  the  Ro- 
manus  Callimachus.    Callimachus 
was  a  poet   of  the   Alexandrian 
school,  of  the  third  century  B.C. 
He  was  regarded  as  one  of  the 
masters    of    the    learned    elegy ; 

175 


101.  Mimnermus:  an  earlier 
(about  600  B  c.)  writer  of  elegi- 
acs, who  was  considered  to  be  the 
founder  of  elegy.  —  optivo  :  a  legal 
term  (  =  adoptii>o),  expressing  with 
cognomine  the  idea  that  the  name 
is  given  as  names  were  given  to 
great  generals,  e.g.,  Scipio  Afri- 
canus.  Such  a.  cognomen  increases 
the  poet's  sense  of  importance 
(crescit}. 

102-105.  '  I  bear  all  this  kind 
of  thing  when  I  am  myself  writ- 
ing, but  if  I  do  not  write  I  can 
escape  from  it.'  This  sums  up 
vss.  87-101  and  explains  how  the 
necessity  of  paying  compliments 
is  an  added  reason  for  not  writing. 
—  irritabile :  z.e.,  sensitive  and 
eager  for  compliments. — suffra- 
gia  capto  :  a  comparison  in  brief; 
'and  seek  for  hearers  as  a  candi- 
date seeks  for  votes.'  —  mente 
recepta :  Horace  is  always  half 
humorous  when  he  refers. to  the 
inspiration  of  poets. — obturem: 
the  subj.  mode  is  faintly  poten- 
tial, almost  a  future.  —  patulas: 


( 


2,  2,  IO6] 


HORATI 


Ridentur  mala  qui  componunt  carmina,  verum 
gaudent  scribentes  et  se  venerantur,  et  ultro, 
si  taceas,  laudant  quidquid  scripsere  beati. 
At  qui  legitimum  cupiet  fecisse  poema, 
cum  tabulis  animum  censoris  sumet  honesti, 
audebit,  quaecumque  parum  splendoris  habebu 
et  sine  pondere  erunt  et  honore  indigna  ferentur, 


i.e.,  'which  before  I  had  been 
obliged  to  keep  open.'  —  impune  : 
with  obturem. 

106-128.  Besides  all  the  rea- 
sons already  given  for  not  writing 
poetry,  there  is  the  further  reason, 
the  most  serious  of  all,  that  the 
work  demands  the  utmost  effort 
and  the  best  powers.  '  Some 
poets,  it  is  true,  find  pleasure  in 
composing,  without  regard  to  the 
quality  of  the  product,  but  the 
poet  of  high  ideals  is  his  own 
severest  critic.' 

107.  gaudent  scribentes :  '  are 
full  of  joy  in  their  writing.'  The 
best  parallel  to  these  verses  is 
Catull.  22,  on  Suffenus  ;  nequeidem 
umquam  \  aeque  est  beatus  ac 
poema  cum  scribit.  —  ultro  :  '  they 
go  on  themselves  to  praise  their 
writings.'  —  beati :  with  laudant. 

109.  legitimum:  i.e.,  'a  poem 
according  to  the  rules  of  the  art 
of  poetry.' 

no.  cum  tabulis:  'when  he 
takes  up  his  tablets  to  begin  writ- 
ing.' The  tabulae  were  used  for 
a  first  draft,  because  erasure  and 
change  were  easy  in  the  waxen 
surface.  The  expression  partly 


anticipates  the  following  compar- 
ison of  the  critic  to  the  censor; 
'the  poet,  when  he  takes  up  his 
tablets  to  write,  will  feel  as  the 
censor  does  when  he  takes  up  the 
lists.'  — honesti :  defining  censoris 
by  a  predicate  addition  ;  '  with  all 
its  strictness.'  The  thought  is 
then  further  amplified  in  audebit. 

The  next  lines  deal  almost  en- 
tirely with  that  part  of  the  poet's 
work  which  has  to  do  with  the 
selection  of  dignified  and  ex- 
pressive words.  This  was  a  sub- 
ject to  which  Horace  had  given 
much  thought,  and,  while  he  is 
following  the  ordinary  rhetorical 
doctrines,  he  is  also  illustrating 
them  by  expressing  his  thought 
with  special  care. 

in.  quaecumque:  sc.  verba. 
—  parum  splendoris :  =  sordida, 
humilia\  words  that  carry  with 
them  mean  or  unpoetic  associa- 
tions. 

112.  sine  pondere:  =  levia, 
inania',  words  that  do  not  convey 
much  meaning  of  any  kind.  — 
honore  indigna  :  this  rather  general 
phrase  —  unworthy  —  is  used  with 
special  reference  to  the  figure  of 


176 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,2,  118 


verba  movere  loco,  quamvis  in  vita  recedant 
et  versentur  adhuc  intra  penetralia  Vestae; 
115    obscurata  diu  populo  bonus  eruet  atque 
proferet  in  lucem  s'peciosa  vocabula  rerum, 
quae  priscis  memorata  Catonibus  atque  Cethegis 
nunc  situs 'informis  premit  et  deserta  vetustas; 


the  censor,  who  removes  from  the 
senatorial    list    honore    indignos. 

—  ferentur :    '  are   in   circulation,1 
the   words   being    here   in   mind, 
rather  than  the  censor's  office. 

113.  movere  loco  :  the  technical 
expression    for    the    censor's   act 
of  condemnation  is  movere  tribu. 

—  invita :  properly  of  those  who 
were  removed  by  the  censor:  as 
applied  to  words  rejected  by  the 
critical  writer  it  has  only  a  rather 
vague   meaning ;    '  although  such 
common  words  recur  constantly  to 
the  mind  and  it  is  hard  to  avoid 
their  use.' 

114.  The    expression    here    is 
selected  almost  entirely  with  the 
thought  of  the   censor's  work  in 
mind ;  '  although  they  may  have 
been  hitherto  at  home  in  the  most 
sacred  spot  in  Rome,'  '  although 
they  may  have  had  thus  far  a  per- 
fect reputation.'    With   reference 
to  words  it  means  'although  they 
have  been  used  in  the  finest  of 
poetry.'    The  identification  of  the 
object  compared  with   the  figure 
results  in  some  lack  of  clearness. 

—  adhuc :    i.e.,   i  until    you    bring 
them  under  your  critical  scrutiny.' 

115-119.    But  the  office  of  the 

HOR.  EP. —  12 


critical  poet  is  not  merely  that 
of  the  censor  who  rejects  ;  he  must 
also  enrich  the  language. 

115.  populo:     with     obscurata, 
the  two  together  being  the  oppo- 
site   of   ferentur,    versentur .  — 
bonus:    i.e.,    'working    for    good 
results.' 

116.  speciosa:   the  opposite  ot 
quaecumque  parwn  splendoris  ha- 
bebunt,  words  of  vivid  meaning  and 
elevated  suggestion. 

117.  Catonibus,   Cethegis:    the 
plur.  means  '  men  like  Cato  and 
Cethegus.'     They  are  again  used 
in  A.  P.  50,  56  as  representatives 
of  the  early  Latin  style.     Cato  was 
regarded  by  writers  of  archaizing 
tendencies,     like     Sallust,     as    a 
master  of  vigorous  and  individual 
style,  and  Cethegus   (consul  204) 
is  mentioned  with  praise  by  Cicero 
(Brut.  15,  57)  and  was  called  by 
Ennius  (Ann.  306)  Suadae  medul- 
la.    It  is  not  necessary,  however, 
to  attach  to  Horace's  use  of  these 
names  any  very  specific  meaning ; 
they  are  types  of  the  early  orator. 

118.  situs  informis:    as  neglect 
results   in   rust    and    mold,    that 
disfigures  the   object,  it  is   itself 
called    informis.     So    deserta    is 


177 


2,  2,  119] 


HORATI 


120 


adsciscet  nova,  quae  genitor  produxerit  usus. 
Vemens  et  liquidus  puroque  simillimus  amni 
fundet  opes  Latiumque  beabit  divite  lingua; 
luxuriantia  compescet,  nimis  aspera  sano 
levabit  cultu,  virtute^carentia  toilet, 
ludentis  speciem  dabit  et  torquebitur  ut  qui 


applied  to  vetustas,  though  it 
properly  describes  the  result  of 
Detttstas.  —  The  enrichment  of  the 
poetic  vocabulary  by  bringing  back 
into  use  words  which  had  fallen 
out  was  one  of  Vergil's  character- 
istic merits.  Horace,  from  the 
nature  of  his  subjects  and  the 
character  of  his  lyric  poetry,  made 
fewer  contributions  of  this  kind. 

119.  adsciscet:  primarily  a  legal 
word,  used  of  admitting  to  the 
enjoyment  of  legal  rights  ;  enroll, 
'admit  to  full  rights.' — genitor 
.  .  .  usus :  the  doctrine  that  usage 
makes  language,  brings  forward 
and  maintains  new  words,  was 
fully  accepted  by  Horace  and  is 
expressed  by  him  in  a  classic 
phrase  (A.  P.  72),  usus,  quern 
penes  arbitrium  est  et  ius  et  nor  ma 
loquendi.  —  This  is  the  second 
means  of  enriching  the  living 
vocabulary.  In  the  fragmentary 
condition  of  Latin  literature  it  is 
not  always  possible  to  tell  what 
writers  first  adopted  a  new  word 
into  literary  style,  but  Horace 
certainly  made  considerable  use 
of  this  method  of  giving  vividness 
and  novelty  to  his  forms  of  ex- 
pression. 


1 20.  vemens,    liquidus :    these 
adjectives,  though   they  go   with 
the  subject  of  beabit  (i.e.,  poet  a), 
are  really  a  part  of  the  compar- 
ison .  —  puro  .  .  .  amni :  cf.  for  the 
opposite,  cum  flueret  lutitlentits, 
of  Lucilius,  in  Sat.  i,  4,  II.     The 
figure    has    been    often    used    in 
English  literature,  e.g.,  Tennyson, 
The  Poet's  Mind :  — 

'Clear  and  bright  it  should  be  ever, 
Flowing  like  a  crystal  river.' 

121.  fundet  opes :  a  rather  gen- 
eral phrase,  which  is  immediately 
explained   more  precisely  in  the 
rest  of  the  line,  in  which  beabit 
and  divite  repeat  opes. 

122-125.  These  lines  go  over 
from  the  choice  of  words  to  the 
larger  aspects  of  composition,  fol- 
lowing the  order  of  rhetorical 
treatises.  There  is  nothing  novel 
in  Horace's  treatment;  what  he 
says  can  be  paralleled  by  passages 
from  Cicero's  rhetorical  works  and 
from  Quintilian,  and  the  same 
things  are  said  again,  more  fully, 
in  the  Ars  Poetica. —  luxuriantia: 
the  figure  of  the  husbandman,  trim- 
ming off  the  foliage  of  the  vine  in 
order  to  increase  its  production  of 


I78 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  2,  J  28 


125    nunc  Satyrum,  nunc  agrestem  Cyclopa  movetur. 
Praetulerim  scriptor  delirus  inersque  videri, 
dum  mea  delectent  mala  me  vel  denique  fallant,      . 
quam  sapere  et  ringi.     Fuit  haud  ignobilis  Argis, 


grapes,  is  frequently  used  of  the 
restraint  of  an  exuberant  style.  — 
aspera  .  .  .  levabit :  rhetoric  paid 
much  attention  to  the  sound  of 
words  and  phrases,  as  was  natural 
when  prose  composition  was  largely 
occupied  with  oratory  and  when 
verse  was  still  closely  allied  to 
song,  aspera  therefore  means 
primarily  *  rough  in  sound,'  but 
with  a  secondary  reference  also  to 
expressions  that  are  too  blunt,  that 
do  not  harmonize  sufficiently  with 
the  general  tone  of  the  writing.  — 
sano :  since  too  great  polish  is 
itself  a  fault,  the  smoothing  off  of 
roughnesses  must  be  done  with 
judgment.  — virtute  carentia :  this 
carries  on  the  thought  of  sano; 
words  and  phrases  which  are  Hack- 
ing in  energy  and  vigor'  must  be 
taken  out  altogether,  and  more 
forcible  and  expressive  words  put 
in  their  place.  For  toilet  in  this 
sense  cf.  Sat.  I,  4,  n,  er at  quod 
toller e  velles,  and  Sat,  I,  10,  51, 
where  tollenda  and  relinquenda 
define  each  other.  —  ludentis  :  '  he 
will  look  like  one  who  moves  with 
ease  and  pleasure ;  his  style  will 
seem  to  involve  no  effort.1  This 
general  expression  is  elaborated  in 
the  figure  of  the  trained  dancer; 
'he  will  seem  to  move  with  ease, 
as  a  dancer  turns  this  way  and 


that  and  plays  now  one  part,  now 
another.'  Cf.  Epist.  2,  i,  210, 
where  the  art  of  the  dramatist  is 
compared  to  the  difficult  art  of  the 
rope  dancer.  —  Satyrum,  Cyclopa : 
this  is  an  allusion  to  the  pantomime 
of  the  rivalry  of  a  faun  (satyr)  and 
the  Cyclops  Polyphemus  for  the 
love  of  the  nymph  Galatea,  in 
which  a  single  actor  expressed 
alternately  in  his  dancing  the  feel- 
ing of  the  graceful  faun  and  of  the 
clumsy  giant.  —  movetur :  the  pas- 
sive is  equivalent  to  saltat  (Sat. 
*•>  3i  63)  and  retains  the  cognate 
accusative. 

126-128.  'As  I  think  of  all  that 
is  necessary  to  produce  good 
poetry,  I  could  almost  wish  that 
I  were  one  of  the  self-satisfied 
writers  (vss.  106-108)  who  do 
not  know  how  badly  they  write.' 
—  delirus  :  this  is  one  of  the  syno- 
nyms for  insanus  in  Sat,  2,  3,  107, 
293.  It  is  selected  rather  than 
stultus  or  ridicttlus,  because  the 
story  of  128  ff.  is  already  in 
Horace's  mind.  —  iners  :  i.e.,  '  too 
indolent  to  meet  the  requirements 
of  the  true  poet.'  —  ringi:  'to 
suffer  the  discomforts  and  vexa- 
tions which  necessarily  attend 
upon  the  effort  to  be  a  critical 
writer  (sapere)? 

128.  baud  ignobilis:  well known  ,• 


179 


2,  2,  129] 


HORATI 


qui  se  credebat  mirAs  audire  tragoedos, 
130    in  vacuo  laetus  scssor  plausorque  theatre, 
cetera  qui  vitae  servaret  munia  recto 
more,  bonus  sane  vicinus,  amabilis  hospes, 
comis  in  uxorem,  posset  qui  ignoscere  servis 
et  signo  laeso  non  insanire  lagoenae, 
135    posset  qui  rupem  et  puteum  vitare  patentenv1 
Hie  ubi  cognatorum  opibus  curisque  refectus 
expulit  elleboro  morbum  bilemque  meraco, 
et  redit  ad  sese :  '  Pol  me  occidistis,  amici, 
non  servastis,'  ait,  '  cui  sic  extorta  voluptas 
140    et  demptus  per  vim  mentis  gratissimus  error.' 
Nimirum  sapere  est  abiectis  utile  nugis 


but  the  adjective  is  meant  to  char- 
acterize the  story,  which  is  told  by 
various  writers,  rather  than  the 
person.  —  Argis:  the  regular  Latin 
form  for  the  dat.  and  abl.  of  this 
word. 

129-131.  The  two  qui  clauses, 
with  credebat  and  servaret,  illus- 
trate well  the  effect  of  the  modes 
in  relative  clauses. 

131.  cetera:  'in  all  other  re- 
spects' he  was  perfectly  sane. 

133.  posset  .   .   .  ignoscere :    a 
little  more  general  than  ignosceret 
would  have  been;   he  'was  capa- 
ble' of  acting  like  a  sensible  man. 

134.  signo  laeso :   i.e.,  when  he 
found  the  seal  on  a  bottle  of  wine 
broken  and  therefore  knew  that 
some  slave  had  been  stealing  the 
wine.     Cf.  also  Sat.  I,  3,  80-83. 

135.  rupem,  puteum :  this  same 
test   of  sanity,   evidently  prover- 


bial, is  referred  to  in  Sat.  2,  3, 
55,  fluvios  being  used  instead  of 
puteum.  Cf.  '  I  can  see  a  church 
by  daylight.' 

137.  These  expressions  for  mad- 
ness and  for  the  cure  of  it  by  helle- 
bore are  used  also  in  Sat.  2,  3,  82, 
141.  —  meraco:  i.e.,  the  strongest 
kind  of  a  dose  was  necessary. 

138.  pol:  cf.  Epist.  i,  7,92,10 
a   similar  ejaculation,   expressing 
the  astonishment  of  the  speaker  at 
finding  himself  where  he  is. 

141.  sapere:  this  resumes  the 
thought  of  vs.  109  and,  more  dis- 
tinctly, the  thought  and  expression 
of  vs.  128,  after  the  digression  of 
the  anecdote,  and  gives  it  a  new 
turn,  toward  philosophy.  This  is 
the  underlying  thought  of  the 
Epistles,  that  Horace  has  given 
up  the  writing  of  poetry  and  turned 
to  the  study  of  philosophy.  — 


180 


EPISTVLAE 

et  tempestivum  pueris  concedere  ludum,  - 

ac  non  verba  sequi  fidibus  modulamda  Latinis. 

sed  verae  numerosque  modosque  ediscere  vitae. 
145    Quocirca  mecum  loquor  haec  tacitusque  recorder  i     -L'  /  d. 

Si  tibi  nulla  sitim  finiret  copia  lymphae,  ?-      **-  •xlxK 

narrares  medicis:  quod  quanto  plura  parasti,  //  dt       ;--$• 

tan  to  plura  cupis,  nulline  faterier  audes? 

Si  vulnus  tibi  monstrata  radice  vel  herba     <*^£*»t4s 
150    non  fieret  levius,  fugeres  radice  vel  herba 

proficiente  nihil  curarier.     Audieras,  cui 


abiectis  .  .  .  nugis:  i.e.,  lyrical 
composition,  as  in  .Sfl/.  I,  9,  2, 
Catull.  i,  4. 

142.  pueris :  the  word  is  chosen 
with  reference  to  ludum ;  cf. 
ludicra,  Epist.  i,  i,  10. 

143-144.  non  verba:  words,  in 
distinction  from  realities.  —  sequi : 
as  the  writing  of  good  poetry 
requires,  vss.  111-119.  —  nume- 
rosque modosque :  these  terms  of 
music  and  rhythmic  art  are  used  to 
point  the  contrast ;  'I  am  learning 
the  measures  and  rhythms  of  a 
wise  life.' 

145-  Ci.Sat.  i,  4,  133  f.,  137  ft, 
where  the  same  thought  is  ex- 
pressed in  very  similar  words.  — 
The  rest  of  the  Epistle  is  an  expo- 
sition of  his  philosophy  of  life,  all 
introduced,  as  if  in  direct  quota- 
tion, by  this  line.  It  is  occupied  i,  30,  3.  —  curarier:  10  oe  ireaiea, 
chiefly  with  that  false  passion 
which  Horace  always  puts  first 
among  the  sins  of  men,  the  love  of 
money  and  of  many  possessions. 

146.   '  The  love  of  money  is  like 


the  dropsy,  with  an  unsatisfied 
thirst  for  more.'  The  same  figure 
is  used  in  Carm.  2,  2,  13-16. 

147-148.  '  In  the  same  way,  the 
desire  for  money  increases  as  it 
is  gratified.'  —  nulli  fateriej:  i.e., 
'you  should  seek  the  advice  of 
those  who  can  cure  your  soul,'  of 
the  philosophers.  —  audes:  sum- 
mon courage  to  overcome  \\\zpudor 
mains  (Epist.  i,  16,  24)  that  in- 
clines you  to  conceal  your  disease. 

149.  monstrata  '.prescribed.  The 
figure  of  the  physician  and  his 
patient  is  carried  on  further ;  '  find 
the  right  treatment  for  your  dis- 
ease.'—  radice:  abl.  instrumental, 
in  both  lines. 

150-151.  fugeres:  governing  cu- 
rarier; ci.fugequaerere,  Carm.  I, 
9,  13,  and  mitte  sectari,  Carm. 
i,  38,  3.  —  curarier:  to  be  treated, 
stnd  of  course  'to  be  cured,'  which 
would  be  inconsistent  with  profi- 
ciente nihil. 

151-154.  audieras:  'you  had 
perhaps  been  told,'  corresponding 


181 


2,  2,  152] 


HORATI 


rem  di  donarent,  illi  decedere  pravam 
stultitiam,  et  cum  sis  nihilo  sapientior,  ex  quo 
plenior  es,  tamen  uteris  monitoribus  isdem  ? 

iss    At  si  divitiae  prudentem  reddere  possent, 

si  cupidum  timidumque  minus  te,  nempe  ruberes, 
viveret  in  terris  te  si  quis  avarior  uno. 
Si  proprium  est,  quod  quis  libra  mercatus  et  acre  est, 
quaedam,  si  credis  consultis,  mancipat  usus; 

160    qui  te  pascit  ager,  tuus  est,  et  vilicus  Orbi, 
cum  segetes  occat,  tibi  mox  frumenta  daturas, 


to  monstrata  radice.  The  advice 
would  be  like  that  in  Epist.  i,  i, 
65,  rem  facias,  rem,  or,  more  pre- 
cisely, in  Sat.  2,  3,  95  f.,  divina 
humanaque  pulchris  divitiis  pa- 
rent. —  nihilo  sapientior :  like  pro- 
ficiente  nihil',  the  treatment  pro- 
duces no  effect. 

*5S-157-  This  thought  also  is 
found  in  Sat.  2,  3,  91  ff.  Here, 
however,  the  desired  virtues  are 
more  definitely  expressed  in  pru- 
dentem, cupidum  timidumque  mi- 
nus, since  the  purpose  is  not  cari- 
cature, but  exhortation.  Cf.  also 
Epist.  i,  1 6,  65,  qui  cupiet,  metuet 
quoque ;  desire  and  fear  are  merely 
the  two  sides  of  a  single  passion. 

158  ff.  <  Possession  consists  in 
use ;  only  the  man  who  uses  can 
be  said  to  possess.'  —  libra  .  .  .  et 
aere :  this  was  one  of  the  tradi- 
tional ways  of  acquiring  property 
by  purchase.  The  scales  and 
piece  of  brass  were  preserved  as 
symbols  from  the  early  time  when 
brass  was  money  and  when  it  was 


not  coined,  but  was  weighed  out 
for  each  purchase.  This  method 
was  called  mancipatio. 

159-  '  Yet  there  is  another 
method,  according  to  the  jurists, 
by  which  property  may  be  ac- 
quired, namely,  by  Jisucapio,  that 
is,  by  possession  for  a  certain 
period.'  Horace  intentionally  uses 
mancipat  in  this  clause,  as  if  to 
say  that  usucapio  was  equivalent 
to  mancipation  this  is  the  basis  of 
the  argument  that  follows,  in  which 
usus  is  really  employed  in  a  double 
sense,  as  a  legal  term  and  in  the 
more  general  meaning. 

160.  quite  pascit:  i.e.,1  of  which 
you  enjoy  the  profits,  the  usus.''  — 
tuus :    =  proprius,  '  your  property, 
because  you  enjoy  it.'  —  Orbi:  un- 
known.    The   only  point  is  that 
he  is  the  'owner'  of  the  workman, 
yet  the  person  who  profits  by  the 
labors  of  the  vilicus  is  the  person 
who  finally  eats  the  grain. 

161.  occat:    harrows',    to  stand 
for  all  the  processes  of  cultivation. 


182 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  2,  171 


te  dominum  sentit;  das  nummos,  accipis  uvam, 
pullos,  ova,  cadum  temeti:  nempe  modo  isto 
paullatim  mercaris  agrum,  fortasse  trecentis 

165    aut  etiam  supra  nummorum  milibus  emptum. 
Quid  refert,  vivas  numerate  nuper  an  olim  ? 
Emptor  Aricini  quondam  Veientis  et  arvi 
emptum  cenat  olus,  quamvis  aliter  putat;  emptis 
sub  noctem  gelidam  lignis  calefactat  aenum.  — 

170    Sed  vocat  usque  suum,  qua  populus  adsita  certis 
limitibus  vicina  refugit  iurgia,  tamquam 


**/%• 


162.  te  dominum  sentit  :  equiva-          167-169.   'The   man   who   buys 


lent  to  tibi  proprium  est,  158. 
The  meaning  of  sentit  is  not  to  be 
pressed ;  it  means  only  that,  in 
effect,  by  transferring  the  products 
of  his  toil  to  you,  he  acknowledges 
you,  not  Orbius,  to  be  his  master. 
163.  temeti:  this  old  word  is 
apparently  the  farmer's  term,  used 
here  with  other  words  describing 
farm  produce.  —  modo  isto :  by  so 
doing. 

165.  emptum:     with   emphasis, 
recurring  to  the  thought  of  pro- 
prium ;   *  and  it  is  then  yours.' 

1 66.  numerate  :  abl.  as  if  of  the 
noun,  but  a  participle  also,  having 
the  adverbs  nuper,  olim,  with  it. 
—  nuper  an  olim :    the  significant 
words  in  the  sentence ;    '  whether 
the  money  by  which  you  live  was 
paid   out   recently  or  some   time 
ago.1     If  the  field  had  been  bought 
in  the  beginning,  the  money  would 
have  been  paid  olim  ;   in  the  daily 
purchase   of  supplies   the   money 
was,  in  part,  paid  nuper. 


the  produce,  really  buys  the  farm  ; 
so,  conversely,  the  man  who  be- 
gins by  buying  the  farm  is  in 
reality  daily  buying  his  supplies 
from  the  farm.'  —  emptor:  'the 
man  who  is  commonly  called  the 
buyer.'  —  quondam :  =  olim,  vs. 
1 66;  to  be  taken  with  the  verbal 
noun  emptor.  —  et :  connecting 
Aricini  and  Veientis.  The  Latin 
frequently  uses  et  where  English 
usage  would  have  'or.'  These 
towns,  Aricia  and  Veii,  were  near 
Rome  and  the  owner  would  have 
the  vegetables  for  his  table  sent 
in  from  his  country  place.  But 
the  vegetables  and  the  firewood 
would  in  reality  be  'bought,' 
though  he  might  like  to  boast  that 
they  were  not.  Cf.  dapes  inemp- 
tas,  Epod.  2,  48  ;  so  '  bough  ten ' 
things  used  to  be  spoken  of  with 
apology  in  New  England. 

170.  usque  .  .  .  qua:      'up    to 
where.'  —  populus:  not  pdpulus. 

171.  refugit:    the  row  of  pop- 


183 


2,  2,  172] 


HORATI 


V*>-' 


f 
sit  proprium  quidquam,  puncto  quod  mobilis  horae 

nunc  prece,  nunc  pretio,  nunc  vi,  nunc  morte  suprema 
permutet  dominos  et  cedat  in  altera  iura. 

175    Sic,  quia  perpetuus  nulli  datur  usus,  et  heres 
heredem  alterius  yelut  unda  supervenit  undam, 
quid'vici  prbsunt  aut  horrea  ?     Quidve  Calabris 

adiecti  Lucani,  si  m&tit  Orcus 
grandia  cum  parvis,  noif%exorabilis  auro  ? 

180    Gammas,  marmirf*,  ebur,  Tyrrheha  sigilla,  tabellas, 
argentum,  vestes  Gaetulo  murice  tinctas,  ,j         ftj* 


lars  'avoids '  disputes,  i.e.,  enables 
the  owner  of  the  land  to  avoid 
them. 

172.  proprium:    going  back  to 
the   beginning  of  this  argument, 
vs.  158.  —  puncto  .  .  .  horae:  the 
phrase  is,  like  all   Latin  phrases 
for  a   brief   time,   entirely  vague, 
and  all  attempts  to  interpret  this 
or  horae  moment o  (Sat.  I,  I,  7  f.) 
with  precision  make  the  mistake 
of    reading    into    it    a    modern 
accuracy. 

173.  prece,  pretio:    'by  gift  or 
purchase.'     The   contrast  is  nat- 
ural   and    the    alliterative   words 
are  several    times    used  together 
in   this   sense. — morte   suprema: 
'death   which   is   the  end  of  all 
things.1 

175.  perpetuus  . .  .  usus :   '  there 
is  therefore  no  such  thing  as  the 
perpetual     possession    of    which 
lawyers  speak.' 

176.  heredem  alterius  :  i.e.  'one 
heir  succeeds  an  heir  of  still  an- 
other heir' ;  the  phrase  expresses, 


perhaps  too  briefly,  the  continuity 
of  the  succession.  Of  the  four 
possible  changes  of  ownership  (vs. 
173)  Horace  dwells  only  upon  the 
last. 

177.  vici:  estates. 

178.  Lucani:  sc.prosunt.    This 
refers  to  the  driving  of  the  herds 
from  the  lowlands  of  Calabria  to 
the  mountain  pastures  of  Lucania. 

—  metit :  a  very  effective  turn  from 
literal    to    figurative    expression. 
The  thought,  and,  in  general,  the 
phrases  of  this  passage  find  fre- 
quent expression  in  the  Odes. 

180-182.  These  possessions  of 
the  wealthy  stand  for  wealth  itself, 
as  merely  a  different  expression 
from  vici,  horrea,  Calabris  saltibus, 
just  as  in  Carm.  I,  31,  armenta, 
aurum,  ebur,  rura,  aureix,  culul- 
lis,  are  all  symbolic  of  riches. 

—  sigilla :    small   figures,    appar- 
ently of  earthenware,  which  were 
found  in  Etruria  and  valued  for 
their  antiquity.  —  argentum :  silver 
plate,  not  money.  —  Gaetulo :   the 


184 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  2,   1 88 


-sunt  qui  non  hab^eant,  est  qui  norTcurat  habere. 
;    Cur  alter  fratrum  cesfeare  et  ludere  et  ungi  •$#»!* 

praeferat  Herodis  palmetis  pinguibus,  alter 
185    dives  et  importunus  ad  umbram  lucis  ab  ortu 
ijjtKsilvestrem  flammis  et  ferro  mitiget^agrum^J^ 
scit  Genius,  natale  comes  qui  temperat  astrum, 
naturae  deus  humanae  mortalis,  in  unum 


African  dye,  one  of  the  better  kind  ; 
ci.  Epist.  2,  i,  207.  —  sunt  qui: 
the  subjunctive  after  these  words 
is  phraseological,  not  expressive ; 
it  came  over  from  negative  sen- 
tences and  sentences  with  indefi- 
nite antecedents,  and  there  is,  in 
most  cases,  no  more  essential  dif- 
ference of  meaning  than  there  is 
between  quamvis  with  the  sub- 
junctive and  quamvis  with  the  in- 
dicative. In  this  particular  in- 
stance, however,  the  difference 
between  the  many  (sunt)  and  the 
one  (esf)  is  strongly  marked  and 
is  further  emphasized  by  the  dif- 
ference in  the  mode.  —  est  qui : 
Horace. 

183-189.  <  Why  there  should  be 
such  differences  between  men, 
even  between  brothers,  only  the 
power  that  made  us  so  can  tell.' 
This  passage  is  parenthetic,  yet 
is  not  far  from  the  main  thought, 
especially  in  vss.  185  f. 

183.  alter  fratrum:  so  in  the 
Adelphoe  of  Terence  and  cf.  Sat. 
2,  i,  26,  on  the  contrast  between 
Castor  and  Pollux.  —  cessare: 
absolutely,  as  in  Epist.  i,  7,  57, 
et  properare  loco  et  cessare. 


184.  Herodis  palmetis:  Herod 
the  Great,  the  Herod  of  the  New 
Testament,  who  ruled  in  Judea 
from  39  to  4  B.C.  The  palm  groves 
about  Jericho  were  specially  fa- 
mous and  were  a  source  of  great 
revenue  (pinguibus}  by  the  sale 
of  dates. 

186.  silvestrem:  i.e.,  it  was 
wooded  land,  which  was  to  be 
cleared  and  prepared  for  farming. 

—  flammis  et  ferro :  both  methods 
were  in  use,  by  burning  or  by  cut- 
ting the  timber  for  building  mate- 
rial   or    for  firewood.  —  mitiget : 
the  clearing  of  land  is  often  treated 
as  a  sort  of  conquest  or  '  breaking 
in,'   like    the   training  of  horses. 

—  While  the  one  brother  prefers  a 
life  of  ease  to  any  kind  of  occupa- 
tion, however  profitable,  the  other 
is  seeking  profit  at  the  cost  of  any 
kind  of  labor. 

187-189.  Genius:  cf.  Epist.  2,  i, 
144,  and  note.  The  individual 
and  contradictory  characteristics 
of  the  Genius  are  dwelt  upon  as 
explaining  the  contradictions  in 
human  nature.  —  natale  ...  as- 
trum :  the  constellations  which  by 
their  position  at  the  hour  of  birth 


185 


2,  2,  189] 


HORATI 


quodque  caput  vultu  mulabilis,  albus  et  ater. 
190    Vtar  et  ex  modico  quantum  res  poscet  acervo 

tollam,  nee  metuam  quid  de  me  iudicet  heres, 

quod  non  plura  datis  invenerit;  et  tamen  idefn 

scire  volam,  quantum  simplex  hilarisque  nepoti    . 

discrepet  et  quantum  discordet  parcus  avaro/W^^ 
195    Distat  enim,  sparg'as  tua  prodigus,  an  neque  sumpturn 

invitus  facias,  neque  plura  parare  labores,          t 
f  ac  potius,  puer  ut  festis  quinquateibus  n1im,pft/>> 

exiguo  gratoque  fruaris  tempore  raptim. 

Pauperies  immunda  domus  procul  absit ;  ego  utrum 

nave  ferar  magna  an  parva,  ferar  unus  et  idem. 

Non  agimur  tumidis  velis  Aquilone  secundo, 


determined  character  and  fate, 
temperat:  the  Genius,  being 
divine,  could  affect  the  constella- 
tions and  planets.  This  passage 
does  not  imply  a  belief  in  astrol- 
ogy;  cf.  Carm.  i,  11 ;  2, 17.  —  in 
unum  .  .  .  mutabilis :  i.e.,  '  assum- 
ing a  different  form  and  character 
for  each  individual.11  This  is  the 
important  point  of  the  whole  de- 
scription. —  albus  et  ater  :  pro- 
verbial ;  cf.  Catull.  93,  nee  scire 
utrum  sis  albus  an  ater  homo.  The 
words  merely  amplify  mutabilis. 

190.  utar :  '  I  for  my  part  desire 
only  use,  not  possession.'     This  is 
familiar  doctrine,  beginning  with 
Sat.  i,  i. 

191.  heres :  with  a  general  ref- 
erence only ;  Horace  had  no  nat- 
ural heir,  but  he  alludes  often  to 
the  proverbial  feeling  between  tes- 
tator and  heir. 


193.  scire  volam:  t'.e.,  'to  be 
fully  aware  of  the  difference '  and, 
it  is  implied,  to  act  accordingly. 
—  With  the  following  thought, 
which  Horace  expresses  in  many 
places,  cf.,  e.g.,  Sat.  2,  2,  53  f. 

195-198.  neque  .  .  .  invitus:  to 
be  taken  together,  as  equivalent 
to  hilaris.  —  Quinquatribus :  the 
short  spring  vacation,  'Easter  re- 
cess,' March  19-23,  which,  because 
it  is  so  short,  the  schoolboy  enjoys 
most  eagerly  (raptim). 

199.  domus:    gen.     with    pau- 
peries. —  absit:    the  clause  with 
subjv.  is  a  paratactic  condition  or 
clause  of  proviso. 

200.  The    figure    is    changed 
somewhat   abruptly ;   literally  the 
thought  is,  *  if  only  I  am  free  from 
sordid  poverty,  I  care  not  whether 
I  have  much  or  little.' 

2oi-ao2.  The  two  clauses  are  in 


186 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  2,  214 


non  tamen  adversis  aetatem  ducimus  Austris, 

viribus,  ingenio,  specie,  virtute,  loco,  re 

extremi  primorum,  extremis  usque  priores. 
205    Non  es  avarus  ;  abi.     Quid,  cetera  iam  simul  isto 

cum  vitio  f ugere  ?     Caret  tibi  pectus  inani         tf™ 

ambitione  ?     Caret  mortis  formidine  et  ira  ? 

Somnia,  terrores  magicos,  miracula,  sagas/ 

nocturnos  lemures  portentaque  Thessala  rides? 
210    Natales  grate  numeras  ?     Ignoscis  amicis  ?      /  < 

Lenior  et  melior  fis  accedente  senecta  ?  -~-^£a.  t 

Quid  te  exempta  levat  spinis  de  pluribus  una  I  ~~fe£&>t)s 

Vivere  si  recte  nescis,  decede  peritis. 

Lusisti  satis,  edisti  satis  atque  bibisti ; 

paratactic  relation ;  '  I  am  not 
borne  on  by  favoring  breezes  of 
prosperity,  yet  I  am  not  struggling 
with  adversity,'  for  '  though  I  am 
not  borne  on.  .  .  .' 

204.  The  figure  again  changes 
to  that  of  the  racecourse ;   cf.  Sat. 
I,  I,  115  f. 

205.  non  es:   pjptar^jr  condi- 
tion.    —  abi:  good.     This  use  is 
colloquial,  e.g.,  Plaut.   Trin.  830, 
abi,   laudo.  —  For  the  thought  of 
the  line  cf.  Sat.  2,  3,  159  f.,  quid, 
si  quis  non  sit  avarus,  continuo 
sanus  ?     Minime. 

208-209.  '  All  kinds  of  supersti- 
tious fears.'  Freedom  from  these 
meant  much  more  to  the  ancients 
than  it  can  ever  mean  to  modern 
men.  —  sagas  :  fortune  tellers.  — 
lemures:  'umbras  vagantes  homi- 
num  ante  diem  mortuorum  et  ideo 
metuendas,'  is  the  comment  of  the 
Scholiast.  —  Thessala:  this  was 


proverbial,  in  Greek  literature  and 
in  Latin. 

210.  natales  grate :  i.e., '  are  you 
grateful  for  each  added  year  of/' 
life?' 

211-212.  'Are  you  becoming  a 
better  man  as  you  grow  older  ? 
For  to  get  rid  of  a  fault  or  two  is 
not  enough.'  The  comparison  of 
faults  to  thorns  is  used  also  in 
Epist.  I,  14,  4  f. 

213.  recte :  i.e.,  as  a  true  philos- 
ophy   teaches.  —  decede    peritis : 
neither   this    phrase   nor  tetnpus 
abire  (215)  is  a  suggestion  of  sui- 
cide ;  the  meaning  is  simply,  '  you 
are  through  with  life,  since  for  you 
it  has  no  real  meaning ;  leave  it  to 
those  who  truly  understand  how  to 
live.' 

214.  The  emphasis  is  not  upon 
the  frivolity  or  self-indulgence  of 
men ;   this  is  merely  an  applica- 
tion  of  decede  peritis  under  the 


187 


2,  2,  215]  HOKATI 

215    tempus  abire  tibi  est,  ne  potum  largius  aequo 
rideat  et  pulset  lasciva  decentius  aetas.  *£ — A^  J 

figure  of  the  satisfied  guest  rising  may  with  more  propriety  indulge 

from  the  table,  as  in  Sat.  I,  I,  Il8f.,  in  follies  and  may  laugh  at  an  old 

exacto    contentus    tempore^     vita  man  who  has  not  learned  to  con- 

cedat  uti  convi-va  satur.  trol  himself. 
a 1 6.   lasciva   decentius:    youth 


ARS   POETICA 


Of  all  the  writings  of  Horace  none  has  been  more  carefully  studied 
and  more  elaborately  discussed  than  this  Epistle.  Yet  it  must  be  said 
that,  in  consequence  of  the  insufficiency  of  data,  there  is  still  consider- 
able uncertainty  in  regard  to  the  date,  the  persons  addressed,  the  occa- 
sion and  purpose,  and  even  the  title. 

The  internal  evidence  in  regard  to  the  date  of  composition  or  publi- 
cation is  both  scanty  and  indefinite.  It  is  to  be  found  in  the  references 
to  persons,  to  Vergil  and  Varius  (55),  to  Cascellius  (370),  to  Tarpa 
(387),  and  to  Varus  (438).  But  no  one  of  these  is  precise.  The  con- 
text and  the  purpose  of  the  allusion  is  such  as  to  be  suitable  to  a  person 
still  living  or  to  one  who  had  passed  into  literary  tradition.  There  is 
a  like  uncertainty  in  regard  to  the  allusions  to  public  works  in  vss.  63  ff. ; 
they  are  too  vague  to  afford  material  for  dating. 

The  only  external  evidence  of  any  weight  is  the  statement  of  Suetonius 
that  Augustus  asked  for  and  received  F.pist.  2.  I  post  sennones  quosdam 
lectos  in  which  he  was  not  mentioned  ;  these  serf/tones  cannot  have  been 
the  First  Book  of  the  Epistles,  where  Augustus  is  frequently  referred  to ; 
they  must  have  been  Epist.  2,  2  —  the  bare  mention  of  Augustus1  name 
in  vs.  48  does  not  stand  in  the  way  of  this  —  and  this  Epistle.  The 
inference  from  the  statement  of  Suetonius  would  therefore  be  that  this 
Epistle  was  written  before  Epist.  2,  i ;  that  is,  in  the  period  between 
the  publication  of  the  First  Book  and  the  writing  of  the  Carmen  Saectt- 
lare.  between  19  or  20  B.C.  and  17  B.C.  Fortunately  the  character  of 
the  Epistle  is  such  that  a  more  precise  date  is  not  necessary  to  its  in- 
terpretation. 

The  persons  to  whom  the  letter  is  supposed  to  be  sent  are  a  father 

1 88 


EPISTVLAE  [2,  3 

and  two  sons,  the  Pisones.  From  the  merely  formal  address  in  vs.  6 
and  vs.  235  and  the  words  O  Pompilius  sanguis  in  vss.  291  f.  no  infer- 
ence can  be  drawn  as  to  their  identity.  In  vs.  366  the  elder  son  is 
specially  addressed  in  terms  which  imply,  though  not  very  clearly,  that 
he  was  just  engaging  or  might  soon  engage  in  poetical  composition. 
These  are  but  scanty  indications  of  identity,  and  the  uncertainty  is 
increased  by  the  frequency  of  the  name-Piso;  fourteen  persons  of  that 
name  are  mentioned  in  the  Onomast.  Cic.,  ten  in  Tacitus,  seven  in 
Suetonius.  But  there  was  a  Gn.  Calpurnius  Piso,  some  years  older 
than  Horace,  who  fought  at  Philippi  and  was  afterward  consul  in  23  B.C. 
His  eldest  son,  consul  in  7  B.C.,  was  born  about  44  and  would  have 
been  about  twenty-five  when  this  Epistle  was  written.  There  was  also 
a  younger  son.  These  may  be  the  Pisones  addressed,  but  it  is  evident 
that  any  identification  is  at  best  a  mere  possibility.  As  nothing  definite 
is  known  of  the  literary  interests  of  these  persons,  the  identification, 
even  if  it  were  certain,  would  contribute  little  to  the  interpretation  of 
the  Epistle. 

The  proper  title  of  this  poem  is  also  uncertain.  It  stands  in  most 
of  the  Mss.  as  a  separate  composition,  just  before  or  just  after  the 
Carmen  Saeculare,  as  if  it  had  been  published  by  itself  ;  and  it  certainly 
was  put  into  circulation,  with  some  degree  of  publicity,  before  Epist. 
2,  I  was  written.  For  such  publication  its  title  may  have  been  Epistula 
ad  Pisones.  But  it  is  referred  to  by  Quintilian,  praef.  2,  in  the  words 
.  .  .  Horati  consilio,  gut  in  arte  poetica  suadet  .  . . .,  and  again,  8,  3, 
60,  Horatius  in  priina  parte  iibri  de  arte  poetica  fingit,  with  a  quotation 
of  the  first  verse.  This  is  the  title  used  by  most  of  the  grammarians 
and  by  the  scholiasts.  It  is  also  found  in  most  of  the  Mss.,  though  it 
may  well  have  been  introduced  there  from  the  grammatical  tradition. 
In  most  printed  editions,  because  of  the  subject  matter  and  the  date, 
the  poem  is  placed  after  Epist.  2,  2,  as  the  third  Epistle  of  the  Second 
Book,  and  it  is  often  referred  to,  for  convenience,  as  Epist.  2,  3.  If 
Horace  gave  it  a  title,  it  was  probably  Episttila  ad  Pisones,  perhaps 
with  the  addition  of  de  Arte  Poetica  or  Ars  Poetica.  Tradition  has 
fixed  upon  it  the  name  Ars  Poetica. 

The  course  of  thought  from  sentence  to  sentence  and  from  one  para- 
graph to  another  is  easily  followed,  but  it  resists  all  attempts  to  reduce 
it  to  a  scheme.  All  that  can  be  said  is  that  the  Epistle  consists  of  a 
series  of  remarks  upon  poetry,  followed  (from  vs.  309  to  the  end)  by 
similar  remarks  upon  the  training  and  ideals  of  the  poet. 

The  general  course  of  the  thought  is  as  follows  :  — 

'A  poem,  like  a  painting,  must  be  well  composed,  not  tricked  out 

189 


2,  3]  HORATI 

with  inharmonious  ornaments  ;  nor  should  the  poet,  avoiding  one  fault, 
fall  into  its  opposite.  Harmony  depends  in  part  upon  a  wise  choice  of 
subject,  which  insures  good  arrangement.  Choice  of  words  also  con- 
tributes to  harmony  of  effect,  for  words  suffer  change,  like  all  human 
things. 

'  The  meters  and  style  of  different  kinds  of  poetry  are  fixed  by  tradi- 
tion, from  which  it  is  not  easy  to  break  away.  Tradition  also  fixes  the 
outlines  of  characters,  and  in  all  these  matters  it  is  best  to  follow  a  good 
model,  in  order  that  your  characters  may  speak  as  befits  their  nature 
and  their  period  of  life. 

'In  the  drama,  too,  one  should  follow  the  best  usage,  with  five  acts 
and  three  speakers.  As  to  the  chorus,  it  should  take  a  sympathetic 
part  in  the  action,  and  the  music  and  the  dress  of  actors  should  not  be 
too  prominent.  The  satyric  drama  presents  peculiar  difficulties,  owing 
to  the  mingling  of  the  heroic  and  the  comic. 

'  In  the  observance  of  metrical  laws  our  Roman  poets  are  too  careless, 
a  fault  for  which,  as  the  history  of  the  Greek  drama  shows,  nothing  will 
atone.  Inspiration  is  not  a  substitute  for  training ;  it  is  a  kind  of  mad- 
ness and,  for  myself,  I  prefer  to  avoid  it  and  to  devote  myself  to  laying 
down  laws  for  other  writers. 

'  The  poet  must  enrich  his  mind  by  reading  and  observation  and  train 
himself  to  avoid  faults.  Not  that  all  faults  can  be  avoided ;  even  Homer 
sometimes  nods.  Yet,  for  a  poet,  mediocrity  is  failure,  and  only  train- 
ing can  teach  us  how  to  escape  that.  We  must  listen  to  the  real  critics, 
not  to  flatterers.  Untrained  inspiration  is  mere  madness,  and  I  do  not 
want  to  see  you  a  madman.' 

The  fact  that  the  course  of  thought  is  rambling  is  the  key  to  an 
understanding  of  the  Epistle.  For  this  arrangement  is  not  the  result 
of  carelessness ;  Horace  followed  this  unsystematic  and  yet  closely 
knit  succession  of  topics  from  deliberate  choice.  He  was  not  trying  to 
compose  a  treatise,  but  to  write  an  epistula,  a  sermo.  Like  any  epistle, 
it  is  addressed  to  certain  persons,  and,  like  any  sermo,  it  follows  the 
line  of  easy  transition  by  suggestion  from  one  topic  to  another.  This 
is  in  itself  a  form  of  art,  the  particular  form  to  which  Horace  had  trained 
himself,  and  this  Epistle  is  to  be  interpreted  precisely  as  Epist.  2,  I  and 
2,  2  are  to  be  interpreted.  That  this  intentionally  unsystematic  poem 
should  have  been  taken  for  a  formal  treatise  on  the  art  of  poetry  is 
indeed  surprising ;  the  error  was  due  in  part  to  a  too  literal  understand- 
ing of  the  traditional  title,  in  part  to  a  general  tendency  among  early 
scholars  to  overvalue  the  content  of  classic  literature.  It  should  be 
valued  rather  as  a  beautifully  finished  sermo,  to  be  studied  for  its  skillful 

TOO 


EPISTVLAE  [2,  3,  3 

turns  of  thought  and  expression,  its  perfect  phrasing,  its  easy  and  mel- 
low tone. 

On  the  other  side,  the  substance  of  what  is  said  in  the  Ars  Poetica 
comes  from  two  different  sources.  Porphyrion  says  in  his  brief  intro- 
duction that  Horace  has  here  gathered  the  teachings  of  Neoptolemus, 
a  rhetorician  of  the  third  century,  non  quidem  omnia,  sed  eminentissima. 
This  may  very  well  be  correct ;  it  is  at  any  rate  clear  that  Horace  is  in 
part  repeating  and  applying  some  of  the  traditional  doctrines  of  rhetoric, 
in  which,  as  a  lifelong  student  of  the  art  which  he  practiced,  he  was 
certainly  interested.  To  this  source  is  due  the  large  proportion  of 
Greek  literary  history.  Of  all  this  it  is  fair  to  say  that  it  is  interesting 
chiefly  to  students  of  the  history  of  rhetoric.  But  Horace  does  not 
merely  repeat  traditional  doctrine ;  he  also  comments  upon  it,  speaking 
with  the  authority  of  an  older  poet  addressing  a  younger  generation  of 
literary  men.  Our  incomplete  knowledge  of  the  tendencies  of  the 
period  makes  it  difficult  to  understand  fully  the  point  of  some  of  his 
warnings,  but  much  of  it  is  of  universal  application,  even  to  modern 
conditions.  This  is  the  more  valuable  part  of  the  Ars  Poetica,  centering, 
as  it  does,  upon  the  necessity  of  adequate  training  for  the  professional 
man  of  letters.  It  is  at  the  same  time  a  proclamation  of  Horace's  owa 
creed  and  thus  a  guide  to  the  interpretation  of  all  his  poetry. 

Humano  capiti  cervicem  pictor  equinam 
iungere  si  velit  et  varias  inducere  plumas 
undique  collatis  membris,  ut  turpiter  atrum 

1-37.   '  Harmony  is  necessary  to  of    creatures.'  —  membris  :     dat. 

a  poem,  as  to  a  picture.'  after  inducere.  —  ut:  the  result  of 

1.  Humano:    the  general  term  the  whole  process,  especially   of 
before    the     specific,    mutter t    as  collatis  membris.      Strictly  taken, 
often.      The  chiastic  order,   adj.-  this  clause  should  be  in  the  form 
noun,  noun-adj.,  is  intentional.  of  another  infinitive ;  but  such  a 

2.  velit :  should  choose,  deliber-  use  of  a  clause  of  result,  to  express 
ately. — varias:    of  many  colors,  some  single  characteristic  of  the 
going  beyond  nature  even  in  this  whole,  is  not  uncommon.  —  turpi- 
detail. — inducere:    lay  on,  as    if  ter  atrum:  to  be  taken  together, 
the   body   were   first    drawn   and  to  balance  formosa  superne]    cf. 
then    the    feathers    were    spread  turpiter  hirtum,  Epist.  i,  3,  22. 
over  it.  This     sense     of    turpis,     '  ugly, 

3.  undique :  i.e.,  '  from  all  kinds  hideous,'  is  frequent. 

191 


2,  3,  4] 


HORATI 


desinat  in  piscem  mulier  formosa  superne, 
spectatum  admissi  risum  teneatis,  amici  ? 
Credite,  Pisones,  isti  tabulae  fore  librum 
persimilem,  cuius  velut  aegri  somnia  vanae*"' 
fingentur  species,  ut  nee  pes  nee  caput  uni 
ur  formae.     '  Pictoribus  atque  poetis 
quidlibet  audendi  semper  fuit  aequa  potestas.' 
Scimus  et  hanc  veniatftlpetimusque  damusque   vicis- 
sim,  j^NT/yu^v^      -  /-- 

li*vv^ 

sed  non  ut  placidis  coeant  immitia,  non  ut 
serpentes  avibus  geminentur,  tigribus  agni. 


4.  mulier :  he  has  in  mind  such 
a  figure  as   Scylla,  in  which   the 
hideousness  of  the  whole  was  in- 
creased by  the  contrast  between 
the  beauty  of  the  face  and  bust 
and  the  ugliness  of  the  body. 

5.  spectatum  admissi :  i.e.,  ad- 
mitted to  a  private  view   in  the 
painter's  studio.  —  amici :  general, 
my  friends,  yet  immediately  made 
definite  by  the  address  in  the  next 
line,  as,  indeed,  the  whole  point 
of  vss.  1-5  is  general,  until   the 
application    is    reached   in   vs.  6. 
Cf.  the  beginning  of  Epist.  2,  2. 

7.  vanae  :  unreal,  i.e.,  fantastic, 
without  any  corresponding  reality. 

8.  species :     images,     '  concep- 
tions.' —  ut   nee   pes   nee   caput  : 
the  expression  is  not  strictly  logi- 
cal ;  the  common  phrase  nee  pes 
nee  caput  (<  neither  head  nor  tail ') 
would  properly  require  something 
like     '  shall     be    distinguishable ' 
(adparet,  Plaut.  Asin.  729)  or  it 
should  be  ut  et  pes  et  caput  non. .  .  . 


g.  reddatur :  belong  to,  *  be  suit' 
able  to.' 

9-10.  The  objection  of  an  imag- 
ined hearer.  —  quidlibet  audendi : 
i.e.,  -  of  using  their  imagination 
freely.'  —  aequa:  'a  like  power,' 
'an  equal  power.'  This  word 
merely  repeats  the  implication  of 
pictoribus  atqne  poetis,  '  poets 
as  well  as  painters' ;  the  em- 
phasis is  upon  semper  futt  potes- 
tas. 

n.  vicissim :  i.e.,  'we  poets  ex- 
pect it  from  painters,  and  we  also 
grant  it  to  them.' 

12-13.  coeant:  in  the  general 
sense,  unite,  as  in  Epist.  1,5,25  f., 
ut  coeat  par  iungaturque  part] 
but  the  general  sense  is  repeated 
in  clearer  form  in  the  next  verse, 
where  serpentes  corresponds  to 
immitia,  avibus  to  placidis,  and 
geminentur,  '  pair,'  is  a  more  defi- 
nite expression  for  coeant. — The 
pairing  of  creatures  of  different 
species  is  often  used  to  typify  the 


192 


EP1STVLAE 


[2,  3»  24 


Inceptis  gravibus  plerumque  et  magna  professis 
(pjjrpureus,  late  qui  splendeat,  unus  et  alter 
-^      adsuitur  pannus,  cum  lucus  et  ara  Dianae 

;   et  properantis  aquae  per  amoenos  ambitus  agros 
aut  flumen  Rhenum  aut  pluvius  describitur  arcus. 
Sed  nunc  non  e.at  his  locus.     Et  fortasse  cupressum 
scis  simulare  :  quid  hoc,  si  fractis  enatat  exspes 
navibus  acre  dato  qui  pingitur  ?     Amphora  coepit 
institui,  currente  rota  cur  urceus  exit? 
Denique  sit  quod  vis,  simplex  dumtaxat  et  unum. 
Maxima  pars  vatum,  pater  et  iuvenes  patre  digni, 


unnatural  or  the  impossible,  e.g., 
Epod.  1 6,  30-32. 

14.  That  is,  the  poem  begins  as 
an  epic  in  the  grand  style,  dealing 
with  the  heroic. 

15-16.  purpureus  .  .  .  pannus : 
this  is  one  of  the  phrases  that  have 
come  over  from  Horace  into  mod- 
ern thought.  The  allusion  is  not 
to  the  purple  stripe  on  the  tunic, 
which  would  not  suggest  incon- 
gruity to  a  Roman,  but  to  a  patch 
of  bright  color  sewed  on  where  it 
did  not  belong. 

17-18.  These  examples  may 
very  well  have  been  taken  from 
poems  then  in  circulation,  so  that 
the  allusions  would  be  at  once 
identified ;  cf.  defingit  Rheni 
luteum  caput  {Sat.  I,  10,  37)  from 
a  poem  of  Furius  Bibaculus. 

19.  sed  :  i.e.,-  they  are  all  very 
fine,  but.  .  .  .'  —  et :  '  and  in  the 
same  way.' 

20.  scis:     'the    motive    which 
leads  to  such  incongruities  is  the 


writer's  belief  that  he  has  special 
skill  in  such  descriptions,  or,  to 
return  to  the  painter's  art,  in  the 
painting  of  certain  objects.'  — 
enatat:  i.e.,  'if  he  is  to  be  repre- 
sented as  swimming  ashore.'  The 
reference  is  to  the  pictures  which 
were  hung  in  temples  to  express 
gratitude  for  escape  from  peril, 
and  which  represented  the  scene 
of  escape.  Cf.  Carm.  i,  5,  13  ff., 
Sat.  2,  i,  33  and  note. 

21-22.  aere  dato :  'and  he  has 
paid  good  money  for  it,  too.'  — 
amphora :  the  larger  vessel  corre- 
sponds to  magna  professis,  vs.  14, 
and  the  smaller  urceus,  in  a  less 
definite  way,  to  the  petty  details 
upon  which  the  poet  spends  his 
efforts.  This  shifts  the  thought 
slightly,  from  the  lack  of  harmony 
to  the  lack  of  consistency  and  te- 
nacity in  the  purpose  of  the  writer. 

23.  A  summary  of  the  thought 
up  to  this  point. 

24-30.    'Incongruities  are  often 


HOK.  EP. — 13 


193 


2,  3.  25] 


HORATI 


25     decipimur  specie  recti :  brevis  esse  laboro, 
obscurus  fio ;  sectantem  levia  nervi 
deficiunt  animique ;  professus  grandia  target ; 
serpit  humi  tutus  nimium  timidusque  procellae ; 
qui  variare  cupit  rem  prodigialiter  unam, 

30      delphinum  silvis  appingit,  fluctibus  aprum. 
In  vitium  ducit  culpae  fuga,  si  caret  arte. 
Aemilium  circa  ludum  f aber  imus  et  ungues 
exprimet  et  molles  imitabitur  acre  capillos, 


the  result  of  a  desire  for  variety, 
as  other  faults  are  the  result  of  the 
desire  to  attain  to  some  particular 
virtue  of  style.' 

25.  specie  recti :  i.e.,  'by  a  per- 
ception of  some  excellence  with- 
out due  regard  to  the  fact  that  it 
may  lead  to  a  defect.'     The  char- 
acteristics  mentioned   are   all    in 
themselves  desirable ;  the  sugges- 
tion that  they  are  misleading  lies 
in    decipimur    and,    slightly,    in 
specie. 

26.  levia :  polish,  as    in   minis 
aspera  sano  levabit  cultu,  Epist. 
2,  2,  122  f.  —  nervi:  cf.  Sat.  2,  i, 
2,  sine  nervis,  of  one  judgment  of 
the  Satires,  opposed  to  nimis  acer. 

27.  The  danger  of  falling  into 
bombast  in  the  attempt  to  write  in 
a  lofty  style  was  constantly  before 
the   mind   of  Horace ;    it   is   the 
fault   which    he   most  sedulously 
avoids.  —  professus :     not   essen- 
tially different  from  sectantem. 

28.  tutus    nimium :     i.e..   '  one 
who  is  too  anxious  to  be  safe.1  — 
timidus  procellae  :  =  dum  procel- 


las  cauttis  hor  resets,  Carm.  2,  10, 
2  f.,  where  also  tutus  is  used 
almost  as  it  is  here. 

29-30.  '  So  it  is,  in  seeking  va- 
riety of  ornament,  that  one  falls 
into  the  absurdities  of  which  I  was 
speaking  above.'  —  cupit:  is  anx- 
ious, as  the  desires  are  expressed 
above  by  strong  words,  laboro, 
sectantem,  professus.  —  prodigia- 
liter :  a  rare  word,  perhaps  coined 
by  Horace  (cf.  Epist.  2,  2,  119)  ; 
to  be  taken  with  variare ;  '  to  in- 
troduce such  variety  as  to  be  like 
a  miracle,'  'to  be  wonderfully 
varied.'  —  unam:  with  emphasis, 
at  the  end  of  the  verse  and  in  con- 
trast to  prodigialiter. — The  in- 
stances in  vs.  30  are  merely  vivid 
expressions  of  the  thought  of  vss. 
16-18  and  especially  vs.  20  f. 

31.  A  summary,  like  vs.  23. 

32-34.  Aemilium  circa  ludum: 
in  the  irregularity  of  an  ancient 
city,  where  few  streets  were  named 
and  no  buildings  were  numbered, 
localities  could  be  described  only 
by  reference  to  some  known  build- 


194 


EPISTVLAE 


3.  44 


infelix  operis  summa,  quia  ponere  totum 
35      nesciet.     Hunc  ego  me,  si  quid  com  ponere  curem, 
non  magis  esse  velim,  quam  pravo  vivere  naso, 
spectandum  nigris  oculis  nigroque  capillo. 
Sumite  materiam  vestris,  qui  scribitis,  aequam 
viribus,  et  versate  diu,  quid  ferre  recusent, 
40      quid  valeant  umeri :  cui  lecta  potenter  erit  res, 
nee  facundia  deseret  hunc  nee  lucidus  ordo. 
Ordinis  haec  virtus  erit  et  venus,  aut  ego  fallor, 
ut  iam  nunc  dicat  iam  nunc  debentia  dici, 
pleraque  differat  et  praesens  in  tempus  omittat. 


ing  or  statue  or  arch.  The  Aemi- 
lius  ludus  was  a  building  used  for 
a  gladiatorial  school,  having  shops 
about  it  opening  on  the  street.  In 
one  of  these  —  at  the  bottom 
(t'tnus),  away  from  the  Forum  — 
was  a  sculptor,  whom  Horace 
chooses  to  designate  only  by  giv- 
ing the  location  of  his  shop.  He 
was  successful  in  details,  —  even 
in  the  difficult  matter  of  represent- 
ing flowing  hair  in  bronze,  —  but 
unsuccessful  in  the  total  result  of 
his  work.  —  ponere  totum :  =  com- 
ponere,  'to  bring  the  whole  into 
unity.1 

37.  The   beauty   of  black   hair 
and  black  eyes  appears  to  be  tra- 
ditional   (cf.    Carm.    i,    32,    11), 
though  they  must  have  been  very 
common  among  the  Romans. 

38-45.   On    the   choice   and  ar- 
rangement of  material  for  a  poem. 

38.  materiam:  literally  building 
material,  and  this  meaning  is  suf- 
ficiently strong  in  Horace's  mind 


to  find  half-expression  in  umeri, 
vs.  40. —  vestris:  any  poets,  not 
especially  the  Pisones.  —  aequam : 
suited  to. 

40.  potenter:  'according  to  his 
powers,'  repeating  quid  ferre  .  .  . 
valeant  umeri. 

41.  facundia :  the  technical  term 
is  elocutio;  the  meaning  is  given 
in  46,   in  -verbis   serendis,  in  the 
choice  and  use  of  words,  diction. 
—  ordo :  this  is  taken  up  first,  in 
vss.  42-44,  because  the  treatment 
of  it   is  to   be   brief,  while  much 
more  space,  vss.  46-72,  is  given  to 
facundia. 

42-44.  venus :  charm.  —  aut  ego 
fallor:  'if  I  am  not  mistaken.1 
This  conventional  phrase  is  in- 
serted here  because  the  brevity 
and  positiveness  of  the  statement 
seems  to  lack  modesty.  —  differat, 
omittat :  the  expression  is  doubled 
for  emphasis  and  to  correspond  to 
the  emphatic  iam  nunc  .  .  .  iam 
nunc. 


195 


2,  3.  46] 


HORATI 


46      In  verbis  etiam  tenuis  cautusque  serendis 
45      hoc  amet,  hoc  spernat  promissi  carminis  auctor. 
Dixeris  egregie,  notum  si  callida  verbum 
reddiderit  iunctura  novum.     Si  forte  necesse  est 
indiciis  monstrare  recentibus  abdita  rerum, 
50      fingere  cinctutis  non  exaudita  Cethegis 

continget,  dabiturque  licentia  sumpta  pudenter. 
Et  nova  fictaque  nuper  habebunt  verba  fidem,  si 
Graeco  fonte  cadent,  parce  detorta :  quid  autem 


46.  tenuis :  to  be  taken  in  sense 
especially  with  amet,  as  caiitus  is 
to    be   taken   with   spernat ;   '  he 
must   be  critical  (fine,  subtle)  in 
accepting  words,  and  equally  cau- 
tious in  rejecting.' 

45.  promissi  carminis  auctore: 
i.e.,  '  in  the  actual  work  of  compo- 
sition, when  he  comes  to  the  car- 
rying out  of  his  intentions.' 

47.  dixeris  egregie;    i.e.,  'your 
diction  will  be  particularly  happy, 
successful.'    This  is  only  a  varia- 
tion  on   the   form  of  vs.   42 ;   it 
might  have  been  facundiae  haec 
•virtus  erit. 

47-48.  callida  .  .  .  iunctura :  the 
skillful  putting  together  of  common 
words,  so  that  the  meaning  of  each 
is  slightly  shifted,  will  often  pro- 
duce all  the  effect  of  novelty. 
Horace  was  himself  particularly 
successful  in  this,  and  many  such 
combinations  may  be  found  in  the 
poems,  especially  in  the  Odes ; 
perhaps  the  best  known  is  splen- 
dide  mendax,  though  the  effect  is 
even  better  seen  in  less  daring 
combinations. 


49.  indiciis :  tokens,  signs,  i.e., 
'  words,'  used  instead  of  verbis  to 
carry  out  the  figure  of  monstrare 
abdita.  —  abdita  rerum :   a  rather 
frequent  form  of  expression ;  Sat. 
2,  2,  25,  -vanis  rerum;  2,  8,  83, 
fictis   rerum.     The    meaning  is 
'to    express    ideas    hitherto    un- 
expressed,   by    means    of  words 
which  will  necessarily  be  new.' 

50.  fingere :  the  making  of  new 
words  is  most  happily  illustrated 
by  cinctutis,  which  does  not  occur 
before  this  in  the  extant  literature 
and     was     probably     coined     by 
Horace.     It   means  'clad   in  the 
cinctus?  a  kind  of  loin  cloth   or 
kilt  which  was  used    before  the 
tunic  as   an  undergarment.  —  Ce- 
thegis :  cf.  Epist.  2,   2,    117  and 
note. 

51.  continget:    'you  will  have 
occasion    to.  .  .  .'  —  sumpta  :     a 
condensed  condition. 

52.  et:  and  also;  in   addition 
to  the  new  words  like  cinctutis. 

53.  Graeco  fonte :  Horace  rarely 
uses    Latinized    forms    of    Greek 
words  and  cannot  be  here  recom- 


196 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  3»  61 


Caecilio  Plautoque  dabit  Romanus,  ademptura 
55      Vergilio  Varioque  ?     Ego  cur,  acquirere  pauca 
si  possum,  invideor,  cum  lingua  Catonis  et  Enni 
sermonem  patrium  ditaverit  et  nova  rerum 
nomina  protulerit  ?     Licuit  semperque  licebit 
signatum  praesente  nota  producere  nomen. 
60      Vt  silvae  foliis  pronos  mutantur  in  annos, 

prima  cadunt,  ita  verborum  vetus  interit  aetas, 


mending  such  additions  to  the 
Roman  vocabulary.  He  does, 
however,  make  large  use  of  words 
suggested  by  Greek  compounds  or 
derivatives  (centimamis,  inaudax, 
perhaps  potenter,  vs.  40),  in  which 
a  new  meaning  is  given  to  a 
Latin  stem.  This  slight  shift  of 
meaning  is  expressed  in  parce  de- 
torta.  The  novelty  would  in  such 
words  be  essentially  the  same  as 
that  given  to  Roman  words  by  the 
callida  iunctura. 

54.  dabit,  ademptum:  the  illogi- 
cal structure  (for  datum,  adimef) 
is  intentional  and  points  to  some 
definite  criticism  ;  '  he  has  already 
refused   the  right    to  Vergil.      Is 
he  now  proposing  to  grant  it  to 
Plautus  ? '     Both    during  his  life- 
time  and  after  his  death    Vergil 
was  criticized  on  the  ground  that 
his  style  was  not  pure  Latin,  as  is 
evident,   for    instance,    from    the 
parody  of  Eclog.  3,  I ,  cuiutn  pecus, 
anne    Latinum  ?      It    is    against 
some  critic  of  this  school  that  this 
question  is  directed.  —  Romanus : 
with  emphasis  ;  '  and  he  a  Roman  V 

55.  pauca:  this  is  the  same  as 


sumpta  pudenter,  vs.  51,  and  the 
opposite  of  ditaverit. 

56.  invideor:  the  usual  passive 
is  invidetur  mihi,  preserving  in 
the  passive  the  dative  construction 
of  the  active  voice.  This  dative, 
however,  is  essentially  the  same 
thing  as  an  accus.,  and  the  use  of 
invideor  is  merely  a  sporadic  in- 
stance of  the  process  of  adjusting 
language,  by  analogy,  to  prevailing 
tendencies.  It  has  nothing  what- 
ever to  do  with  <$>6ovov[j.ai..  — 
Catonis  et  Enni:  cf.  Epist.  2,  2, 
117.  Ennius  was  probably  the 
greatest  innovator  in  the  history 
of  Latin  literature. 

58-59.  licuit,  licebit :  emphatic, 
with  reference  to  dabit,  ademptum, 
54 ;  'on  the  contrary,  neither  to 
writers  of  the  past  nor  to  those  of 
the  future  is  this  right  denied.1 
—  praesente  nota :  =  indiciis  re- 
centibus,  vs.  49,  with  the  added 
suggestion  of  the  figure  of  coinage, 
the  figure  which  has  become  tradi- 
tional in  English. 

60-62.  '  As  in  the  woods,  with 
the  passing  years,  the  leaves 
change,  those  of  one  year  falling 


197 


"I     , 

2,  3,  62]  HORATI 

Aet  iuvenurn  ritu  florent  modo  nata  vigentque. 
Debemur  morti  nos  nostraque,  sive  reqeptus 
terra  Neptunus  classes  Aquilonibus  arcet 
65      regis  opus,  sterilisve  diu  palus  aptaque  remis 
vicinas  urbes  alit  et  grave  sentit  aratrum  ; 
seu  cursum  mutavit  iniquum  frugibus  amnis, 


and  new  ones  growing  in  their 
place,  so  words  grow  old  and 
perish,  passing  like  the  genera- 
tions of  men  from  birth  to  matur- 
ity and  then  to  death.' — foliis: 
abl.  with  mutantur ;  it  does  not 
matter  whether  it  is  called  an  abl. 
of  instrument  or  of  limitation 
(respect).  —  pronos:  the  year 
glides  down  toward  its  end ;  cf. 
pronos  volvere  mensis,  Carm.  4, 
6,  39.  —  in  annos :  '  with  each 
year.'  The  distributive  meaning 
is  common,  e.g.,  in  horas,  vs.  160. 
—  prima  cadunt :  this,  in  the  con- 
text, implies  the  converse,  'and 
new  ones  grow,'  the  two  sentences 
being  parenthetical.  -  -  iuvenum 
ritu :  '  like  the  generations  of  men.' 
Here  also  a  part  of  the  thought  — 
'  and  finally  perish  '  —  is  left  to  be 
supplied  from  the  context. 

63-68.  'All  things  perish,  even 
the  greatest  works  of  men.'  This 
general  truth  is  illustrated  by  allu- 
sions to  three  great  pieces  of 
engineering  work,  planned  or  un- 
dertaken by  Julius  Caesar  or 
Augustus.  The  course  of  thought 
demands  that  they  should  be  works 
which  were  either  carried  to  com- 
pletion or  at  least  so  far  advanced 


that  Horace  could  think  of  them 
•as  practically  completed.  The 
first  is  either  the  cutting  into  the 
Lucrine  Lake  to  make  a  harbor 
(a  work  of  no  great  magnitude, 
carried  out  by  Agrippa)  or  the 
making  of  a  similar  harbor  at 
Ostia  (planned  by  Julius  Caesar 
and  perhaps  carried  on  by  Au- 
gustus). The  second  was  the 
draining  of  the  Pomptine  marshes, 
also  planned  by  Julius  Caesar, 
but  never  completed.  The  third 
was  the  straightening  of  the  Tiber 
to  prevent  floods  and  protect  the 
farm  lands  ;  this  was  another  large 
project  ascribed  to  Caesar,  and 
some  progress  was  made  upon  It 
under  Augustus.  So  far  as  we 
can  judge,  with  our  scanty  knowl- 
edge, Horace  is  alluding  to  great 
works  which  seemed  to  be  so  far 
advanced  that  he  could  regard 
them  as  completed.  Whether  the 
first  was  the  Lucrine  Lake  or  the 
port  at  Ostia  does  not  matter  to 
the  sense.  —  regis  opus:  a  royal 
work.  —  palus:  this  is  a  very  un- 
usual prosody.  —  iniquum  frugi- 
bus :  this  would  imply  that  the 
work  was  done  on  the  river  either 
above  or  below  the  city. 


iq8 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  3.  77 


doctus  iter  melius :  mortalia  facta  peribunt, 
nedum  sermonum  sjet  honos  et  gratia  vivax. 

70      Multa  re.nascerjtur.  quae  iam  cecidere,  cadentque 
quae  nunc  sunt  in  honore  vocabula,  si  YQJpr  usus, 
quern  penes  arbitrium  est  et  ius  et  norma'loquendi. 
Res  gestae  regumque  ducumque  et  tristia  bella 
quo  scribi  possent  numero  monstravit  Homerus. 

75      Versibus  impariter  iunctis  querimonia  primum, 
post  etiam  inclusa  est  voti  sententia  compos. 
Quis  tamen  exiguos  elegos  emiserit  auctor, 


68-69.  mortalia  .  .  .  peribunt : 
repeating  debemur  morti  nos  nos- 
traque,  to  summarize  the  thought 
and  prepare  for  the  application. 

—  sermonum :   not  exactly  verbo- 
rum,  but  '  habits  of  speech,' '  ways 
of  speaking.'  —  vivax :  to  be  taken 
closely  with  stet ;  l  maintain  their 
living  force.' 

70-72.  The  thought  here  goes 
back  to  the  positive  statements  of 
vss.  60-62.  —  usus :  usage,  as  in 
Epist.  2,  2,  119,  genitor  .  .  .  usus. 

—  arbitrium,  ius,  norma :  decision, 
rights,    standard.      Horace    uses 
three    words    to    emphasize    the 
thought  that  the  making  and  un- 
making of  forms  of  speech  is  not, 
after  all,  in  spite  of  his  injunctions 
to   the   poet,   determined   by  any 
individual,  but  by  general  usage. 
The  three  nouns   merely  express 
a  single  idea  with  slightly  varying 
shadings. 

73-98.  On  the  forms  that  are 
suitable  to  the  different  kinds  of 
matter.  —  This  goes  back,  over  the 


intervening  parts,  or  do  andfacun- 
dia,  and  connects  with  sumtte 
mater  iam,  vs.  38.  It  is  to  be  re- 
membered that  in  the  forms  of 
poetry,  and  especially  in  the  meters 
appropriated  to  particular  subjects, 
classical  literature,  both  Greek  and 
Latin,  was  much  more  strongly 
traditional  than  modern  literature. 

73-74-  '  The  hexameter  is  to  be 
used  for  epic  poetry.'  —  res  gestae  : 
i.e.,  historical  events  and  actions, 
not  mythological  or  legendary, 
which  belong  to  tragedy  (regum 
facta,  Sat. 'i,  10,  42  f.).  He  is 
thinking  of  the  Roman  historical 
epic,  like  the  Annals  of  Ennius. 

75-78.  Elegiac  verse,  the  coup- 
let made  up  of  a  hexameter  and 
a  pentameter..  —  querimonia :  la- 
ments, like  songs  of  grief  for  the 
dead.  —  voti  sententia  compos :  i.e., 
the  expression  of  thanks  for  the 
granting  of  a  prayer,  which  was 
expressed  in  the  form  of  a  dedica- 
tory epigram.  —  The  rhetoricians 
(grammatici)  made  it  a  part  of 


199 


*,  3. 


80 


HORATI 


grammatici  certant  et  adhuc  sub  iudice  lis  est 
Archilochum  proprio  rabies  armavit  iambo  ; 
hunc  socci  cejjere  pedem  grandesque  cothurni, 
alternis  aptum  sermonibus,  et  populares 
vincentem  strepitus  et  natum  rebus  agendis. 
Musa  dedit  fidibus  divos  puerosque  deorum 

pugilem  victorem  et  equum  certamine  primum 
et  iuvenum  cruras  et  libera  vina  referre. 

^^tu^a  ....... 

Descnptas  servare  vices  operumque  colores 
cur  ego  si  nequeo  ignoroque  poeta  salutor  ? 
Cur  nescire  pudens  prave  quam  discere  malo  ? 
Versibus  exponi  tragicis  res  comica  non  vult. 
Indignatur  item  privatis  ac  prope  socco 


r 


90 

their  doctrine  to  determine  in  the 
case  of  each  kind  of  meter  who  was 
its  '  inventor,'  as  here  Homer  is  re- 
garded as  the  inventor  of  the  hex- 
ameter, and  Archilochus  of  the 
lyric  iambics.  —  exiguos  :  in  con- 
trast to  the  hexameter,  which  was 
used  for  large  subjects  and  long 
poems. 

79.  proprio :     his  own  because 
invented  by  him.     Cf.  also  Epist. 
I,  19,  24  f.,  30  f. 

80.  hunc  . . .  pedem :  the  iambus 
passed   over  (in  the  trimeter)   to 
the  drama.  —  socci,  cothurni :  the 
common   designation   of   comedy 
and  tragedy  by  the  ghoes  worn  by 
actors  in  them. 

81-82.  alternis  .  .  .  sermoni- 
bus:  dialogue,  especially  that  in 
which  two  characters  speak  alter- 
nate lines.  —  rebus  agendis :  i.e., 
for  accompanying  action  on  the 
stage. 


83-85.  fidibus :  the  lyric  meters. 
—  The  proper  subjects  are  hymns 
to  the  gods  and  heroes,  odes  com- 
memorating victories  in  the  games, 
love  poems  and  drinking  songs. 
These  are  all  varieties  of  lyric 
poetry  recognized  in  rhetoric. 

86-87.  descriptas  servare  vices : 
this  connects  immediately  with  the 
preceding,  vss.  73-85  ;  « these  are 
the  accepted  canons  of  poetic  form. 
If  through  ignorance  I  fail  to  ob- 
serve them,  then  I  am  not  a  poet 
at  all.'  —  descriptas :  '  laid  down  in 
rhetorical  theory  and  here  re- 
peated.' 

88.  pudens . .  .vaster,  'out  of  false 
shame,'  that  pudor  mains  which 
leads  one  to  conceal  his  defects 
instead  of  seeking  a  cure  for  them. 
Cf.  Epist.  i,  1 6,  24. 

90-91.  privatis:  with  carmini- 
bus ;  '  poetry  that  deals  with  the 
affairs  of  ordinary  people,'  in  dis- 


200 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  3.  99 


dignis  carminibus  narrari  cena  Thyestae. 
Singula  quaeque  locum  teneant  sortita  decentem. 
Interdum  tamen  et  vocem  comoedia  tollit, 
iratusque  Chremes  turaido  delitigat  ore  ; 
95      et  tragicus  plerumque  dolet  sermone  pedestri 
Telephus  et  Peleus,  cum  pauper  et  exul  uterque 
proicit  ampullas  et fgesquipedalja'  verba, 
si  curat  cor  spectantis  tetigisse  querela. 
Non  satis  est  pulchra  esse  poemata;  dulcia  sun  to. 


tinction  from  a  tragedy  involving 
a  king  of  heroic  legend.  Atreus 
gave  to  Thyestes  the  flesh  of  his 
own  children  to  eat. 

92.  A  summarizing  statement  at 
the  close  of  the  argument,  followed 
by  an  acknowledgment  that  there 
are  exceptional  cases.— singula: 
'  each  form  of  poetry,1  epic,  elegiac, 
lyric.  —  sortita :  the  meaning  of 
sars,  '  lot,'  is  frequently  left  out  of 
the  verb,  which  means  only  '  to 
obtain,  secure,  receive.1  Here  it 
is  '  the  place  which  custom  has 
assigned  to  them.1 — decentem: 
with  emphasis ;  '  and  to  which 
good  taste  confines  them.'  locum 
teneant  of  course  involves  a  figure, 
the  literal  meaning  being,  '  let 
each  kind  of  writing  use  the  meter 
and  style  which  belongs  to  it.' 

93-94.  The  kind  of  scene  in 
comedy  where  an  angry  father 
{Chremes)  berates  his  son,  which 
Horace  has  already  used  (Sat.  i, 
4,  48  ff.)  in  his  argument  to  prove 
that  comedy  is  not  poetry,  in  the 
full  sense  of  the  word.  The  ex- 


ample is  probably  taken  from  some 
book  on  rhetoric. 

95-98.   'Tragedy  also  will  occa- 
sionally use    an    ordinary   style.'  /' 

—  tragicus  :      with     Telephus    et  - 
Peleus ;    'in    tragedy,'  as  in  Saf. 

2,  5,  91,  Davits  sis  comicus,  'be 
like  Davus  in  a  comedy.'  —  dolet: 
i.e.,  'expresses  his  sorrows.'  — 
Telephus  and  Peleus  are  illustra- 
tions of  tragic  characters  in  pov- 
erty or  exile,  in  circumstances 
which  reduce  them  to  the  level 
and  language  of  common  people. — • 
ampullas :  Epist.  I,  3,  14  and  note. 

—  sesquipedalia :     this     word     is 
used  literally  by  various  writers ; 
the  humorous  meaning,  when  it  is 
applied  to  words,  is  strengthened 
by  the  length  of  the  word  itself 
and  it  is  only  in  this  use  and  sense 
that  it  has  come  over  into  English 

—  perhaps  from  this  passage. 
99-1 1 1.    'So,    in    general,    the 

effectiveness  of  poetry,  especially 
of  dramatic  poetry,  depends  upon 
the  use  of  a  fitting  style.' 
99-100.  pulchra,  dulcia :  'beau* 


2,  3,  loo] 


HO  K  ATI 


100    et,  quocumque  yoleot,  animum  auditoris 
Vt  ridentibus  arrident,  ita  flentibus  adsunt 
human!  vultus  :  si  vis  me  flere,  dnlendnm  est 
primum  ipsi  tibi ;  tune  tua  me  infortunia  laedent, 
Telephe  vel  Peleu  ;  male  si  mandata  loqueris, 

105    aut  dormitabo  aut  ridebo.     Tristia  maestum 
vultum  verba  decent,  iratum  plena  minarum, 
ludentem  lasciva,  severum  seria  dictu. 
Format  enim  natura  prius  nos  intus  ad  omnem 
fortunarum  habitum  ;  iuvat  aut  impellit  ad  iram, 

no    aut  ad  humum  maerore  gravi  deducit  et  angit ; 
post  effert  animi  motus  interprete  lingua. 


tiful  in  themselves,  as  works  of 
art';  ' charming  in  their  effect.' 
Catullus,  86,  expresses  the  same 
difference  between  two  women  by 
pulchra  and  formosa.  —  sunto  et 
.  .  .  agunto ;  paratactic  coordina- 
tion ;  '  but  if  they  are  delightful, 
then  they  will  move  .  .  .  .' 

101-102.  'The  emotions  felt  and 
expressed  by  the  speaker  and 
actor  excite  similar  emotions  in 
the  hearers  and  spectators.'  The 
thought  is  not  clearly  expressed. 
humani  vultus  means  the  expres- 
sion, and  therefore  the  emotions, 
of  the  audience,  but  the  word  vul- 
tus is  selected  really  with  reference 
to  the  mobile  face  of  the  actor,  to 
whom  ridentibus  and  flentibus  re- 
fer. Adsunt  is  a  more  general 
term  than  arrident,  used  in  the 
second  part  of  the  comparison ; 
'respond  to,'  'sympathize  with.' 

104.  The  thought  goes  back  for 
a  moment  to  vs.  96.  — male  .  .  . 


mandata :  i.e.,  '  if  the  words  that 
the  speaker  utters  sound  merely 
like  things  he  has  been  told  to  say 
(mandata),  and,  still  worse,  are 
ill-adapted  to  his  situation  (male 
mandata').'' 

106.  vultum :  as  above,  both  the 
emotion  and  the  expression  of  face 
which  accompanies  the  emotion. 
In  this  whole  passage  Horace  is 
thinking  of  the  effect  of  a  play 
upon  the  spectators,  and  is  identi- 
fying the  expression  of  the  actor 
with  his  feeling. 

108-111.  'For,  by  a  law  of  na- 
ture, all  emotions  come  from  with- 
in, and  then  find  expression  in 
words.'  This  is  the  reason  why  the 
words  should  correspond  to  the 
looks  and  the  emotions.  —  format : 
this  general  word  is  explained  by 
iuvat,  impellit,  angit,  expressing 
the  various  '  forms '  of  emotion.  — 
prius  :  '  before  we  speak  ' ;  the 
sense  is  completed  by  post,  vs. 


EPISTVLAE 


12>  3.  » 19 


Si  dicentis  erunt  fortunis  absona  dicta, 
Romani  tollent  equites  peditesque  cachinnum. 
Intererit  multum  divusne  loquatur  an  heros, 
115    maturusne  senex  an  adhuc  florente  iuventa 
fervidus,  an  matrona  potens,  an  sedula  nutrix, 
mercatorne  vagus,  cultorne  virentis  agelli, 
Colchus  an  Assyrius,  Thebis  nutritus  an  Argis. 
Aut  famam  sequere,  aut  sibi  convenientia  finge. 

f\  ,*»•*.  A  iJOL/^J^       »*9t    1 

III.  —  ad  .  .  .  habitum :  '  accord- 
ing to  the  varying  circumstances  of 
our  lives  {fortunarum).'1  —  effert : 
the  subject  is  natura  ;  '  expresses,' 
'brings  out  from  within  (intus)S 

112-113.  Line  1 12  summarizes  in 
negative  form  the  thought  which 
has  just  been  expressed  positively, 
and  at  the  same  time  introduces  a 
treatment  of  the  same  theme  from 
a  different  point  of  view.  — absona: 
the  opposite  of  vss.  105-107. — 
equites  peditesque:  Horace  fre- 
quently uses  eqites,  equites,  to  de- 
note the  more  cultivated  part  of 
the  audience  or  of  the  reading 
public.  Here,  desiring  to  refer  to 
the  whole  audience,  he  uses  the 
customary  word,  and  then  humor- 
ously adds  pedites,  playing  upon 
the  literal  meaning  of  equites. 

114.  divusne  an  heros  :  i.e.,  be- 
tween a  god  and  a  man,  even  a 
hero  such  as  would  appear  on  the 
stage  with  a  divinity. 

115-118.  Classical  drama  was 
more  limited  and  conventional  in 
its  range  of  characters  than  modern 
fiction,  and  the  persons  represented 
are  easily  classified,  as  here.  Such 


lists  are  given  often  in  rhetorical 
writings.  Horace  is  merely  select- 
ing a  few  well-known  types,  in 
contrasting  pairs,  the  old  man  and 
the  young  man,  the  mistress  of  the 
household  and  the  old  nurse,  the 
trader  or  sailor  and  the  farmer.  — 
In  vs.  118  the  contrast  is  carried 
out  rather  elaborately;  the  two 
barbarians  are  contrasted  with  the 
two  Greeks,  and  then  with  each 
other.  This  corresponds  to  reality 
in  the  contrast  of  the  Colchian 
(the  wilder  and  more  savage  type) 
with  the  Assyrian  (the  effeminate 
Oriental),  but  there  is  not,  in  re- 
ality or  in  tradition,  any  such  dis- 
tinct contrast  between  the  Theban 
and  the  Argive.  Horace  is  prob- 
ably thinking  of  the  legends  which 
brought  the  two  cities  into  conflict, 
like  the  Seven  against  Thebes  of 
Aeschylus. 

119.  This'  line,  again,  is  both 
summary  and  transition,  carrying 
the  thought  on  from  harmony  be- 
tween the  speaker  and  his  words 
to  harmony  in  the  character  it- 
self. 


203 


IIORATI 


I25 


13° 


Scriptor  honoratum  si  forte  reponis  Achillem, 
impiger,  iracundus,  inexorabilis,  acer 
iura  neget  sibi  nata,  nihil  non  adroget  armis. 
Sit  Medea  ferox  invictaque,  flebilis  Ino, 
perfidus  Ixion,  lo  vaga,  tristis  Orestes. 
Si  quid  inexpertum  scaenae  committis,  et  audes 
personam  formare  novam,  servetur  ad  imum 
qualis  ab  incepto  processerit  et  sibi  constet. 
est  proprie  communia  dicere,  tuque 
rectius  Iliacum  carmen  deducis  in  actus,- 
quam  si  proferres  ignota  indictaque  primus. 
Publica  materies  privati  iuris  erit,  si 


120.  scriptor :  closely  with  re- 
ponis, which  is  so  general  in  mean- 
ing that  it  needs  a  definition.  — 
honoratum :  i.e.,  as  the  great  hero 
of  the  Iliad,  with  the  characteristics 
which  belong  to  him  in  tradition. 

122.  The  two  parts  of  the  line 
say  the  same  thing  in  two  different 
ways  ;  '  let  him  refuse  to  acknowl- 
edge laws,  but  instead  appeal  al- 
ways to  arms.'  The  traditional 
contrast  between  laws  and  arms, 
between  peace  and  war,  underlies 
the  form  of  expression. 

123-124.  These  are  typical  ex- 
amples from  Greek  legends,  each 
character  having  its  descriptive 
adjective.  They  illustrate  the  first 
part  of  vs.  1 19,  the  following  of 
tradition. 

125.  inexpertum :  this  takes  up 
the  possibility  implied  in  the  sec- 
ond half  of  vs.  119.  —  scaenae: 
Horace  is  not  here  specifically  dis- 
cussing the  drama,  as  a  particular 


poetic  form  distinct  from  the  epic 
or  the  lyric,  but,  since  the  delinea- 
tion of  heroic  character  was  to  be 
found  chiefly  in  tragedy,  he  uses 
terms  of  the  drama,  without,  how- 
ever, intending  to  exclude  epic 
treatment  of  the  same  material. 

127.  ab  incepto:  logically  with 
servetur  ad  imum.  —  processerit : 
of  coming  out  upon  the  stage.  — 
sibi  constet :  this  goes  back  to 
sibi  convenientia  and  closes  the 
brief  discussion  of  that  topic. 

128-135.  proprie  communia: 
these  somewhat  general  words  ex- 
press concisely  and  figuratively 
what  is  explained  more  fully  and 
literally  in  the  rest  of  the  para- 
graph, by  means  of  which  these 
words  must  be  interpreted,  diffi- 
cile is  the  opposite  of  rectius 
('more  wisely,  more  safely1),  and 
proprie  .  .  .  dicere  is  therefore 
the  opposite  of  dramatizing  a  well- 
known  story  and  identical  with 


204 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,3. 


non  circa  vilem  patulumque  moraberis  orbem, 
nee  verbum  verbo  curabis  reddere  fidus    j^ 
interpres  ;  nee  desilies  imitator  in  artum, 
35    unde  pedem  proferre  pudor  vetet  aut  operis  lex, 
nee  sic  incipies,  ut  scriptor  cyclicus  olim  : 


proferre  ignota  indictaque.  It 
therefore  means  ( to  write  about 
things  which  no  other  writer  has 
handled,  things  which  are  not  a 
part  of  literature,  but  which  belong 
to  common  experience,  in  such  a 
way  as  to  make  them  your  own 
(proprie)?  The  thought  of  the 
whole  is,  'it  is  hard  to  put  the 
stamp  of  individuality  upon  ordi- 
nary material,  and  you  will  find  it 
easier  to  dramatize  some  story 
from  the  Trojan  cycle  than  to 
strike  out  into  unknown  fields.'  — 
tu :  the  poet,  not  one  of  the 
Pisones.  —  Iliacum  carmen:  not 
necessarily  the  whole  Iliad. — 
'  Yet  a  certain  measure  of  original- 
ity in  the  handling  of  old  material 
may  be  attained,  if  you  use  the 
right  method.'  —  publica:  such  as 
the  Homeric  story.  —  privati  iuris : 
i.e.,  'will  become  your  own,  will 
bear  your  stamp.'  This  figure,  of 
acquiring  private  rights  in  what 
had  been  public  property,  was  in 
Horace's  mind  from  the  beginning 
of  the  sentence  and  undoubtedly 
led  to  the  choice  of  the  rather  con- 
fusing phrase  proprie  communia. 
Cf.  also  Epist.  i,  3,  156°.,  where 
the  same  figure  is  used  in  a  dif- 
ferent way. —  patulum  .  .  .  orbem: 
primarily  of  the  monotonous  path 


of  an  animal  turning  a  millstone 
then  of  the  commonplace  path 
which  most  writers  of  little  origi- 
nality follow.  —  interpres,  imitator : 
this  appears  to  have  been  espe- 
cially frequent  in  Roman  tragedy, 
so  far  as  can  be  judged  from  the 
fragments,  though  even  there  it 
is  not  quite  what  we  understand 
by  a  '  word-for-word '  translation ; 
Horace  is  contrasting  it  with  his 
own  freer  following  of  Alcaeus 
and  Sappho.  —  desilies  in  artum: 
the  phrase  seems  to  be  a  reminis- 
cence of  the  fable  of  the  goat  that 
jumped  into  a  well,  but  the  com- 
parison is  not  to  be  carried  over 
into  the  next  line. — pudor:  t.e., 
an  unwillingness  to  acknowledge 
your  error.  — operis  lex :  no  more 
than  '  the  nature  of  the  work ' ;  a 
close  imitation  will  bind  the  writer 
so  closely  to  the  plot  of  his  model 
that  he  cannot  free  himself  at  all 
without  destroying  the  unity  of 
the  work. 

136.  The  form  of  sentence,  nee 
with  the  future,  goes  on,  though 
the  subject  changes  from  origi- 
nality to  the  treatment  of  the 
beginning  of  a  poem.  This  con- 
tinuation of  grammatical  structure 
is  intended  to  make  the  transition 
easy  and  unperceived,  as  in  all 


305 


2.  3.  137] 


HORATI 


$#       V  V 

'  Fortunam  Priami  cantabo  et  nobile  belliuwr /Jr^* 
Quid  dignum  tanto  feret  hie  promissor  hiatu  ? 
4*^**~*~Tla. rturien  t  montes,  nascetur  ridiculiiSJDius, 

*-*•*?  jb/^      x/yT^* 

140    Quanto  rectius  hie,  qui  nil  mohtur  mepte  :  ' 

*y  Die  mihi  Musa  virum,  captae  post  tempora  Troiae 
qui  mores  hominum  multorum  vidit  et  urbes.' 
Non  fumum  ex  fulgore,  sed  ex  fumo  dare  lucern 
cogitat,  ut  speciosa  dehinc  miracula  promat, 
*<r    145  .  Antiphaten  Scyllamque  et  cum  Cyclope  Charybdim ; 
VJ»^  nee  reditum  Diomedis  ab  interitu  Meleagri, 
nee  gernino  bellum  Troianum  orditur  ab  ovo. 
Semper  ad  eventum  festinat  et  in  medias  res, 


his  writings  Horace  avoids'formal 
arrangements  of  thought. — cycli- 
cus :  a  technical  name  given  by 
Alexandrine  critics  to  the  poets 
who  handled  parts  of  the  Trojan 
story  not  included  in  the  Iliad  or 
Odyssey ;  their  poems,  with  the 
Homeric  poems,  form  a  complete 
circle  (cyclus). 

137-138.  The  absurdity,  as  Hor- 
ace sees  it,  is  in  the  largeness 
of  the  promise,  and  perhaps  in 
nobile.  But  there  is  much  that 
is  conventional  and  unreal  in  this 
paragraph,  vss.  137-142.  Cf.  the 
noble  opening  sentence  of  Para- 
dise Lost.  —  promissor :  apparently 
coined  to  ridicule  the  cyclic  poet. 
—  hiatu:  also  a  ridiculous  sug- 
gestion, as  if  the  poet  opened 
his  mouth  wide  to  utter  such  a 
line. 

139-  Notice  the  effect  of  the 
monosyllabic  close. 


141-142.  Cf.  Epist.  I,  2,  19-21, 
where  the  first  lines  of  the  Odyssey 
are  freely  rendered.  Horace  has 
simplified  Homer  by  omitting  the 
second  line,  CTTCI  Tpoirjs  icpov  TTTO- 


143.  '  Not  like  a  fire  that  begins 
brightly  and  then  dies  down  into 
smoke.'  fulgore  and  lucent  are 
the  same. 

145.  Antiphaten  :  Od.  10,  100  ff. 
—  Scyllam,   Charybdim:  Od.    12, 
87    ff.  —  cum    Cyclope:     Od.    9, 
1  60  ff.  ;  the  construction  is  merely 
a  variation  for  et  Cyclopem. 

146.  Homer  does  not  begin  as 
the  writer  did  who,  having  for  his 
subject  the  return  of  Diomed  from 
Troy,  went  back  by  way  of  intro- 
duction and  told  the  other  story 
of  the  tragic  death  of  his  uncle, 
Meleager. 

147.  That  is,  from  the  birth  of 
Helen. 


206 


El'lSTVLAE 


3,  IS7 


non  secus  ac  notas,  auditorem  rapit,  et  quae 
150    desperat  tractata  nitescere  posse,  relinquit ; 

atque  ita  mentitur,  sic  veris  falsa  remiscet, 

primo  ne  medium,  medio  ne  discrepet  imum. 

Tu,  quid  ego  et  populus  mecum  desideret,  audi. 

Si  plausoris  eges  aulaea  manentis  et  usque 
155    sessuri,  donee  cantor  'Vos  plaudite '  dicat, 

aetatis  cuiusque  notandi  sunt  tibi  mores, 

mobilibusque  decor  naturis  dandus  et  annis. 

149.   notas :   i.e.,  Homer  treats          155.   vos  plaudite :  the  formula 


his  subject-matter  as  already  in 
part  known  to  his  hearers,  as  in 
fact  it  was. 

150.  tractata  :  handled,  treated. 
The    Latin    construction    here   is 
clumsy  and  should  not  be  used  in 
translating. 

151.  mentitur:  i.e.,  uses  fictions. 
—  veris   falsa :    this    reflects    the 
belief  that  the  Homeric  story  was 
in  the  main  historical. 

153-177.  'The  poet  must  make 
his  characters  consistent  and  life- 
like and,  in  particular,  must  no- 
tice the  characteristics  of  different 
periods  in  life.' 

153.  tu:    the   poet,  as  in   128. 
The  abrupt  line  introduces  a  new 
thought,  in  this  case  wholly  with- 
out transition.     From  this  point 
the  drama,  which   has  been  'fre- 
quently alluded  to,  though  not  dis- 
tinctly the  subject  of  discussion, 
becomes  more  prominent. 

154.  plausoris :     to    be    taken 
closely  with    manentis ;    '  if    you 
want  your  audience  to  stay  and  to 
listen  with  pleasure  up  to  the  end.' 


with  which  the  plays  ended  ;  some- 
times vos  valete  et  plaudite.  It  is 
spoken  sometimes  by  the  com- 
pany (grex),  som'etimes  by  the  last 
•  actor,  and  sometimes  (Plaut.  Trin., 
M.G.,  and  all  the  plays  of  Ter- 
ence) there  is  no  indication  of  the 
speaker.  There  is  no  allusion 
elsewhere  to  a  cantor,  nor  can 
anything  be  inferred  from  this 
passage  in  regard  to  the  usage  in 
the  time  of  Terence. 

156.  notandi:    'observed   with 
care.' 

157.  decor:  that  which  is  suited 
(decens,  vs.  92)   to  each   period, 
not  merely  the  good  qualities  ;  cf. 
170  ff. 

The  description  of  the  different 
Ages  of  Man  was  probably  tradi- 
tional. In  Terence  there  are  only 
two,  adulescens  and  senex;  Aris- 
totle (Rhet.  2, 12)  has  three  ;  Shak- 
spere  (As  You  Like  It,  2,  7)  has 
seven.  Though  Horace  intro- 
duces this  as  a  part  of  his  advice 
to  the  dramatist,  he  does  not  con- 
fine himself  strictly  to  the  possi- 


207 


3. 


HORATI 


Reddere  qui  voces  iam  scit  puer  et  pede  certo 
signal  humum,  gestit  paribus  colludere,  et  iram 

160    colligit  ac  ponit  temere  et  mutatur  in  horas. 
Imberbus  iuvenis,  tandem  custode  remote, 
gaudet  equis  canibusque  et  aprici  gramine  campi, 
cereus  in  vitium  flecti,  monitoribus  asper, 
utilium  tardus  provisor,  prodigus  aeris, 

165    sublimis  cupidusque  et  amata  relinquere  pernix. 
Conversis  studiis  aetas  animusque  virilis 
quaerit  opes  et  amicitias,  inservit  honori, 
commisisse  cavet  quod  mox  mutare  laboret. 
Multa  senem  circumveniunt  incommoda,  vel  quod 


bilities  and  needs  of  the  drama. 
The  first  stage,  vss.  1 58-160,  would 
not  be  represented  in  tragedy  or 
comedy,  characteristics  are  men- 
tioned which,  though  they  can  be 
noticed  by  a  writer  of  novels,  could 
scarcely  be  indicated  within  the 
conventional  limits  of  Greek  or 
Latin  drama  (164,  tardus  pro- 
visor]  165;  167,  amicitias ;  171), 
and,  in  general,  much  stress  is  laid 
upon  the  quickness  of  change 
(157;  iam,  158;  160;  166;  175) 
from  one  period  to  another. 
Horace  has  carried  his  descrip- 
tion beyond  his  first  intention. 

159-160.  signal:  i.e.,  leaves 
tracks  (signa)  as  he  walks.  —  ges- 
tit :  of  the  child's  eagerness  for 
play.  —  temere  :  without  cause. 

161-165.  tandem:  i.e.,  the  long- 
desired  time  has  come  and  he  is 
his  own  master.  —  custode :  the 
paedagogus,  as  Horaces  father  was 
to  him,  Sat.  I,  6,  Si.  —  equis  cani- 


busque :  this  has  a  Greek  sound : 
cf.  Ter.  Andr.  56  f.,  aut  equos  aler*, 
aut  canes  advenanduin,  of  a  young 
man's  first  interests,  when  he  is  out 
of  his  father's  control.  —  cereus: 
the  figure  which  this  word  suggests 
does  not  extend  to  flecti]  'impres- 
sible as  wax  and  easily  turned 
toward  folly.'  —  monitoribus  as- 
per :  cf.  the  scene  in  Plaut.  Bacch. 
109  ff.  —  provisor:  'slow  to  pro- 
vide .  .  . ' ;  the  corresponding 
phrase  in  Aristotle  (Rhet.  2,  12) 

is    <J>L\OXprj/JUl.TOL     rfKLCTTO.. 

166-168.  studiis :  his  interests. 
—  opes  :  in  the  general  sense,  '  in- 
fluence and  power,'  which  connects 
well  with  amicitias,  '  alliances '  for 
influence,  such  as  Cicero  discusses 
and  condemns ;  cf.  also  Sat.  2,  6, 
75 .  —  honori :  office. 

169-174.  This  picture  of  old  age 
is  found  in  various  places,  e.g.,  in 
Cic.  de  Senect.,  and  especially  in 
scenes  in  Terence.  — vel  quod :  not 


208 


[2.3.179 


170    quaent  et  inventis  miser  abstinet  aC  timet  uti, 
vel  quod  res  omires  timide  gelideque  ministrat, 
dilator,  spe  lonrgus,  iners,  avidusque  futuri, 
difficilis,  querulus,  laudator  temporis  acti 
se  puero,  castigator  censorque  minorum. 

175    Multa  ferunt  anni  venientes  commoda  secum, 
multa  recedentes  adimunt,  ne  forte  seniles 
mandentur  iuveni  pjar<tes'1puerbque  viriles  ; 
semper  in  adiunctis  aevoque  morabimur  aptis. 
Aut  agitur  res  in  scaenis,  aut  acta  refertur. 


causal,  but  explicative  of  incommo- 
da.  —  quaerit :  absolute.  Avarice 
is  traditionally  and  perhaps  actually 
the  vice  of  old  age.  —  timet  uti : 
while  youth  is  prodigus  aeris ; 
perhaps  there  is  a  relation  between 
the  two.  —  gelide :  a  particularly 
well-chosen  word.  —  spe  longus : 
this  may  be  a  translation  of 
SucrcAirts,  the  word  which  Aristotle 
uses.  It  would  then  mean  '-slow 
to-efrterfcrm  hopes.'  It  is,  in  fact, 
not  a  clear  phrase.  —  avidus  futuri : 
i.e.,  anxious  about  what  of  life  is 
left  to  him.  —  minorum :  of  younger 
men. 

Though  much  of  the  substance 
of  this  passage  (158-174)  is  tra- 
ditional, the  admirable  phrasing, 
which  has  made  it  a  classic,  is 
Horace's  own. 

175-178.  Cf.  Epist.  2,  2,  55. 
This  is,  in  reality,  a  comment  upon 
life  and  its  changes  and  not  directly 
connected  with  the  work  of  the 
poet.  Horace  brings  it  into  con- 
nection with  his  main  line  of 


thought  by  ne  ...  mandentur,  but 
somewhat  awkwardly,  since  no 
one  would  propose  to  give  to  a 
invents  the  words  suited  to  a 
senexor  would  confuse  a  vir  and  a 
puer  in  delineating  character.  —  ne 
.  .  .  mandentur :  a  parenthetic  final 
clause  ;  '  and  so  one  must  not.  .  .  .' 
—  semper:  with  morabimur,  not 
with  adiunctis ;  the  sense  is  '  char- 
acter changes,  but  we  poets  must 
always  be  watchful  to  note  the 
qualities  of  each  period.'  —  adiunc- 
tis :  i.e.,  the  qualities  that  accom- 
pany each  time  of  life.  —  aevo : 
with  both  adiunctis  and  aptis, 
which  are  connected  by  -que. 

179-188.  What  scenes  should  be 
put  upon  the  stage.  —  This  is  one 
of  the  traditional  subjects  of  rhe- 
torical discussion. 

179.  The  statement  of  actual 
usage  precedes  the  discussion.  — 
refertur :  '  are  described  by  an 
actor  as  having  occurred  off  the 
stage,'  within  the  palace  or  else- 
where. 


HOR.  EP.  — 14 


209 


2,3,  i8o] 


.  ~v  ,  a- 
HORATI 


190 


180.  segnius  irritant:  'produce 
a  less  vivid  impression.'  —  demissa 
per  aurem :  i.e.,  the  matters  which 
are  merely  described. 

182.  sibi  tradit :  the  spectator 
has,  as  it  were,  seen  the  action  him- 
self and  so  tells  it  to  himself,  in- 
stead of  having  it  told  to  him  by 
the  messenger  or  reporter.  —  intus : 
in  the  palace  ;  with  digna  geri. 

184.  facundia  praesens  :  '  a  mes- 
senger   (speaker)     appearing     in 
person.'     It  is,  I  think,  quite  im- 
possible that  praesens  should  mean 
'  who  was  present  when  the  action 
occurred.'     The  point  of  praesens 
is  that  it  enforces  the  contrast  be- 
tween that  which  took  place  off  the 
stage    (ex  oculis)  and  that  which 
the  spectator  is  permitted  to  see, 
in  the  person  of  the  actor  who 
comes  on  to  tell  the  tale. 

185.  ne:   nearly  like  ne  of  vs. 
176.    Many  »i?-clauses  are  like  this, 
indistinguishable  in  form  frompro- 


Segnius  irritant  animos  demissa  per  aurem, 
quam  quae  sunt  oculis  subiecta  fidelibus  et  quae 
ipse  sibi  tradit  spectator.     Non  tamen  intus 
digna  geri  promes  in  scaenam,  multaque  tolles 
ex  oculis  quae  mox  narret  facundia  praesens, 
ne  pueros  coram  populo  Medea  trucidet, 
aut  humana  palam  coquat  exta  nefarius  Atreus, 
aut  in  avem  Procne  vertatur,  Cadmus  in  anguem. 
Quodcumque  ostendis  mihi  sic,  incredulus  odi. 
Neve  minor  neu  sit  quinto  productior  actu  )  ^° 
f abula,  quae  posci  vult  et  spectata  reponi,/^  y*^ 
Nee  deus  intersit,  nisi  dignus  vindice  nodus  r 

hibitions  and  hot  essentially  differ- 
ent in  sense.  —  In  the  Medea  of 
Euripides  the  children  are  killed 
within  the  palace,  but  their  cries 

•*•  ' 

are  heard  by  the  audience. 

186-187.    These  myths  are  not 
the  subject  of  any  Greek  plays  now     ^, 
extant,  but  the  references  are  of 
course  to  definite  plays  known  to 
Horace. 

188.  incredulus  odi :  expressing 
in  one    phrase    the    two   distinct 
emotions  ;  incredulus  refers  to  the 
impossible  metamorphoses  of  vs. 
187,  odi  to  the  horrible  spectacle 
of  vs.  185  or  1 86. 

189.  quinto  .  .  .  actu :  this  rule 
Horace  got  from  some  grammatical 
tradition,  and  it  was  long  current, 
on  his  authority,  in  modern  times. 
It  is,  however,  quite  without  foun- 
dation.   The  act  divisions  in  Latin 
comedy  are  not  in  the  Mss.  or  in 
the  earliest  editions. 

191.   deus  intersit:  t.t.,  natural 


210 


/ 

EPISTVLAE  [2,  3,  200 

I       incident:  nee  quarta  loqui  persona  laboret      .   ,t    ^    ' 
Ljj/Actoris  partes  chorus  officiumque  virile  "  /  ^^.^ 

\j>/  defendat,  neu  quid  medios  intercinat  actus,       W&*- 
/9$    quod  non  proposito  conducat  et  haereat  apte. 
Ille  bonis  faveatque  et  consilietur  amice, 
et  regat  iratos  et  amet  peccare  Jimentis; 
ille  dapes  laudet  mensae  brevis,  ille  salubrem 
iustitiam  legesque  et  apertis  otia  portis ; 
200    ille  tegat  commissa,  deosque  precetur  et  oret, 


means  should  usually  be  found  for 
working  out  the  plot.  The  rule 
was  laid  down  with  reference  to 
plays  in  which  supernatural  in- 
tervention was  unnecessarily  em- 
ployed.—  vindice  :  defender,  one 
who  protects  the  hero  and  releases 
him  from  the  complications  of  the 
plot.  The  phrase  nisi dignus  vin- 
dice nodus  is  classic. 

192.  loqui   .   .    .   laboret:     the 
rule   was   that   only  throe  speak- 
ing characters   should  be  on  the 
stage   at    once ;    a  fourth    would 
not  easily  find  a  place  (laboret} 
in    the    dialogue.      This    rule   is 
not    without    exceptions    and    in 
the  later  comedy  was  not  observed 
at  all. 

193.  actoris    partes:     i.e.,    the 
chorus   should   be   treated  as  an 
actor,  should  have  its  place  in  the 
plot  and  in  the  action,  and  this 
should  be  an  important  part  (offi- 
cium  virile). 

194-195.  '  It  should  not  be  used 
merely  to  sing  interludes,  odes 
which  do  not  contribute  (conducat) 


to  the  plot  or  have  any  real  connec- 
tion with  it.' 

196-201.  The  proper  function  of 
the  chorus. 

196.  bonis   faveat :    this    is    in 
accordance  with  the  practice  of  the 
extant  tragedies,  that  the  chorus 
should  support  the  cause  of  virtue. 
— consilietur:  advise.     This   also 
is  common. 

197.  regat :  i.e., t  try  to  control.' 
—  peccare  timentis  :  not  the  same 
as  bonis,  but  the  characters  who 
seem  to  be  shrinking  from  some 
wrong  act  that  is  presenting  itself 
to  them  as  a  possibility.     For  the 
expression  cf.  Epist.  i,  16,  52 ;  2, 
1,23. 

198.  mensae    brevis :    i.e.,    '  it 
should  be  on  the  side  of  simplicity, 
against  luxury.'     Cf.  cena  brevis, 
Epist.  i,  14,  35. 

200.  tegat  commissa  : 'it  should 
play  the  part  of  the  trustworthy 
confidant  and  not  betray  secrets 
committed  to  its  keeping.'  This 
situation  is  not  infrequent  in  Greek 
tragedy. 


211 


«,  3.  201] 


HORATI 


24>5 


ut  redeat  miseris,  abeat  fortuna  superbis/ 
Tibia  non,  ut  nunc,  orichalco  vincta,  tubaeque 
aemula,  sed  tenuis  simplexque  f£>ramme  pauco 
adspirare  et  adesse  choris  erat  utilis,  atque 
nondum  spissa  nimis  complere  sedilia  flatu, 
quo  sane  populus  numerabilis,  utpote  parvus, 
et  frugi  castusque  verecundusque,  coibat. 

ostquam  coepit  agros  extendere  victor  et  urbes 
latior  amplecti  murus  vinoque  diurno 
placari  Genius  festis  impune  diebus, 

raji 

'«.   I 


201.  redeat,   abeat,    foi 
partial  personification ;  cf.  Carm 
I,  35,  23  f.,  utcumque  tnutata  po- 
tetitis  |  veste  domos  inimica  linquis. 

202  ff.  The  discussion  of  the 
function  of  the  chorus  suggests 
easily  the  music  which  accompa- 
nied the  songs. 

202.  tibia :  properly  a  wooden 
or  ivory  flute,  with  few  openings, 
which  gave  a  light  and  clear  sound. 
When   bound    with   metal  —  ori- 
chalcum  was  an  amalgam  of  cop- 
per and  other   metals  —  its  note 
was  more  like  that  of  a  brass  horn 
(tuba},  less  clear  and  simple. 

204.  adspirare,  adesse  :  as  an  ac- 
companiment to  the  choral  song, 
without  independent  force. 

205.  nondum:    especially   with 
erat  utilis  to  be  supplied.  —  nimis : 
with  spissa.     '  The  flute  was  not 
yet  used,  as  it  is  now,  to  fill  with 
loud  blast  a  crowded  theater,'  t.e., 
was  not  independent  of  the  song. 

206.  quo :     the    antecedent    is 
sedilia,  for  the  whole  theater.  — 


sane  j  'of  course,'  'you  know.'  — 
utpote  parvus :  parenthetic  and 
explanatory  of  numerabilis. 

207.  The  adjectives  describe 
the  ideal  simplicity  and  piety  of 
the  early  time,  which  Horace  here 
regards  as  necessary  to  the  purity 
of  art. 

208-210.  In  the  preceding  dis- 
cussion of  the  drama  there  is 
nothing  to  indicate  that  Horace 
was  thinking  exclusively  of  the 
Greek  tragedy ;  on  the  contrary, 
the  advice  is  of  course  addressed 
to  writers  of  Roman  tragedy.  Yet 
the  tone  is  almost  wholly  Greek. 
As  the  discussion  goes  on,  how- 
ever, to  the  period  of  luxury,  the 
underlying  thought  is  Roman. 
This  appears  in  agros  extendere 
•victor,  which  is  not  strictly  appli- 
cable to  Greek  history  after  the 
Persian  Wars,  but  is  accurately  de- 
scriptive of  Roman  history  after 
the  Punic  Wars.  The  plural  urbes 
would  suggest  Greek  cities  ;  latior 
murus  is  suitable  to  either;  but 


212 


215 


EPISTVlUS? 

accessit  ntamerisque  modisque  licentia  maior. 
Indoctus  quid  enira  saperet  liberque  laborum 
rusticus,  urbano  conf  usus,  turpis  honesto  ? 
Sic  priscae  motumque  et  luxuriem  addidit  arti 
tibicen  traxitque  vagus  per  pulpita  vestem : 
sic  etiam  fidibus  voces  crevere  severis, 
et  tulit  eloquium  insolitum  facundia  praeceps, 
utiliumque  sagax  rerum  et  divina  futuri 


la.  3,  21* 


vs.  210  is  wholly  in  Roman  terms. 

—  diurno :    in  the  daytime.  —  im- 
pune :   i.e.,  without  consideration 
of  the  proper  restraints. 

211.  numerisque  modisque: 
more  complicated  music  and  me- 
ters were  used.  This,  according 
to  the  traditional  doctrine,  was 
regarded  as  licentia,  like  the  in- 
creasing license  of  manners. 

212-213.  quid  enim  saperet: 
i.e.,  '  no  standard  of  taste  could 
be  maintained  in  a  population  so 
mixed  and  so  unrestrained.'  — 
liber  laborum :  on  festal  days  la- 
bor would  be  suspended. — turpis 
honesto  :  where  there  was  no  such 
distinction  as  that  which  in  Hor- 
ace's time  separated  the  equites  — 
the  cultivated  part  of  the  audience 

—  from  the  lower  classes. 
214-215.    sic  :  as  a  result  of  this 

confusion  and  this  increase  of 
luxury.  —  motum :  i.e.,  he  moved 
about  the  stage  (vagus'),  no  longer 
subordinating  himself  to  the  cho- 
rus. —  luxuriem :  i.e.,  he  trailed 
his  purple  robe  (traxit  vestem) 
about  the  stage. 

216.   voces :   notes.     The  tradi- 


tion was  that  the  lyre  was  at  first 
four-stringed,  and  that  the  number 
of  strings  was  gradually  increased 
to  eleven. 

217.  tulit :  brought  in, '  brought 
with  it.'  —  eloquium:  style.  —  fa- 
cundia praeceps  :  '  the  eager  desire 
to  speak,  unrestrained  {praeceps) 
by  considerations  of  taste.1  The 
same  licentia  maior  which  had 
affected  music  influenced  also  the 
style  of  the  choral  odes. 

2 1 8-2 1 9.  sagax :  with  sententia ; 
the  thought  itself  was  affected  by 
the  same  tendencies  and  came  to 
be  full  of  precepts  and  senten- 
tious maxims  of  wisdom.  —  divina 
futuri :  the  chorus  undertook  to 
prophesy,  and  became  as  obscure 
and  bombastic  as  oracles.  The 
precise  point  of  these  criticisms 
is  not  clear,  nor  even  whether 
Horace  has  in  mind  the  later 
Greek  tragedy  or  the  Roman. 
This  whole  passage,  vss.  202-219, 
is  to  be  regarded  as  a  bit  of  the 
traditional  rhetorical  doctrine  and 
not  as  history  or  direct  criticism. 
The  point  of  view  is  wholly  incor- 
rect. 


213 


2,  3.  219] 


HO  <ATI 


sortilegis  non  discrepuit 
220    Carmine  qui  tragico  vile 


•\\n* 


4- 


sententia  Delphis. 
n  certavit  ob  hircum, 


mox  etiam  agrestis  Satyros  nudavit,  et  asper 
incolumi  gravitate  iocum  tentavit  eo,  quod 
illecebris  erat  et  grata  novitate  morandus 
spectator,  functusque  sacris  et  potus  et  exlex. 
225    Verum  ita  risores,  ita  commendare  dicaces 
J  conveniet  Satyros,  ita  vertere  seria  ludo, 


Af'      .^"220-250.    The    Satyric    drama. 
j[-    This  section  also  is  in  part  tradi- 

Jl\.  iXl  tional,  but  it  is  in  part  a  real  criti- 
cism of  forms  of  drama  which  were 
on  the  stage  in  Horace's  time,  like 
mimes  and  fabulae  Atellanae,  and 
which  bore  enough  resemblance 
to  the  Satyr  plays  to  justify  Hor- 
ace in  treating  them  all  as  one 
kind  of  drama. 

220-221.  certavit:  this  is  Greek, 
referring  to  the  dramatic  contests 
at- Athens. — hircum:  the  com- 
monly accepted  derivation  of 
rpay(o8ia  was  from  rpayos,  a  goat 
offered  as  the  prize  of  victory. — 
mox :  i.e.,  the  Satyr  play  is  sup- 
posed to  be  derived  from  tragedy. 
This  is  the  reverse  of  the  fact ; 
formal  tragedy  was  a  development 
out  of  the  popular  Satyr  play  and 
the  name  comes  from  the  use  of 
rpayos  of  the  chorus  of  the  Satyr 
drama.  —  nudavit :  the  Satyrs  were 
naked  except  for  a  goatskin  about 
the  loins.  —  asper :  i.e.,  he  was 
still  a  tragic  poet,  with  something 
of  the  severity  of  tragedy.  The 
Satyr  play,  as  a  fourth  play  after 
the  dramatic  trilogy,  was  written 


by  the  same  poet  who  had  written 
the  tragedies. 

222.  incolumi  gravitate  :  'with- 
out loss  of  dignity '  by  presenting 
such  plays. 

223.  morandus:     i.e.,    'it    was 
necessary  to  provide  some  amuse- 
ment and   novelty  to  detain  the 
spectators.' 

224.  functus    sacris :     '  having 
already  performed  the  solemn  rites 
of  sacrifice,    they   were    released 
from  restraint  (exlex)? 

225.  verum:    'but,  though  the 
spectators  were  exlex  and  the  ob- 
ject of  the  play  was  laughter  and 
jesting,  there  were  still  restraints 
imposed  upon  the  characters  and 
the  style  of  the  plays.'  —  risores  : 
in  effect  an  adj.,  merry,  to  balance 
dicaces,     jesting,      commendare : 
i.e.,  'present  them   to  the   favor 
of  the  audience.' 

226.  vertere     seria    ludo:      the 
Satyr   play,   coming   immediately 
after  the   tragedies,  changed   the 
spirit  from  seriousness  to  lightness. 
The  abl.  (ludo)  is  rare  with  verto, 
but  is  found  occasionally  after  the 
analogy  of  the  abl.  with  muto. 


214 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  3.  234 


ne  quicumque  deus,  quicumque  adhibebitur  heros, 
regali  conspectus  in  auro  nuper  et  ostro, 
migret  in  obscuras  humili  sermone  tabernas, 
230    aut,  dum  vitat  humum,  nubes  et  inania  captet. 
Eff utire  levis  indigna  tragoedia  versus, 
ut  festis  matrona  moveri  iussa  diebus, 
intererit  Satyris  paullum  pudibunda  protervis. 

Non  ego  inornata  et  dominantia  nomina  solum 

/    /2'^fe  .     nn**1-J/. 

228.  conspectus  .  .  .  nuper:  the 
characters  of  the  tragedy,  where 
they  had  appeared  in  royal  state, 
might  reappear  in  the  Satyr  play. 
In  that  case  the  contrast  should 
not   be  made   so   startling  as  to 
shock  the  taste  or  to  degrade  the 
heroic  tone  of  tragedy. 

229.  migret   in  ...  tabernas : 
the    king   or  hero   who  has  just 
been  seen  coming  out  of  his  pal- 
ace must  not  now  be  represented 
as  moving  to  a  hovel.     The  word 
tabernas  is  chosen  with  reference 
to  the  Roman  farces  called  fabulae 
tabernariae,  plays  of  low  life,  the 
scene  of  which  was  in  some  poor 
place   of  resort   for  the  common 
people.  —  humili    sermone  :     this 
anticipates  what  is  said  at  greater 
length  in  the  next  lines. 

230.  nubes  et  inania :  the  oppo- 
site fault  of  a  tone  too  lofty  for 
the  general  spirit  of  the  play. 

231.  indigna:  (  not  condescend- 
ing to  .  .  .,'  as  in  Epist.  \,  3,  35, 
indigni  fraternum  rumpere  foe- 
dus.  —  tragoedia :    i.e.,  the  tragic 
(heroic)    character   in   th~    Satyr 
play. 


232.  moveri  iussa  :  dancing  was 
ordinarily  considered  quite  unsuit- 
able   for    a    woman    of    dignity, 
but    at    some    religious     festivals 
the     married    women    took    part 
in  the  dance  as  a  religious  duty 
(iussa).     Cf.  Carm.  2,   12,  ij  K. ; 
3,  14,  5  f.,  for  references  to  such 
dances. 

233.  intererit    .    .    .    paullum: 
'  will  have  little  to  do  with,' '  will 
be  among  them,  but  will  retain  the 
dignity  proper  to  tragedy.'     The 
contrast  is  emphasized  by  the  jux- 
taposition of  the  two  adjectives, 
'  dignified  herself,  in  spite  of  their 
frolicsome  behavior.' 

234.  non  .  .  .  solum :  the  other 
half  of  the  thought   begins  with 
vs.    240,  without   a  particle   (sed 
etiam)  ;  '  I  should  not  be  satisfied 
with  observing  the  ordinary  laws 
of  colloquial   style  or   even   with 
making  some  finer  distinctions  ;  I 
should    aim    at     something    still 
higher.'  —  inornata  :   plain  words 
which  suggest  no  figurative  mean- 
ings. —  dominantia  :  a  translation 
of  Kvpia,  literal,  as   nomina  ver- 
baque  is  a  translation  of  ovd/xara 


215 


3,  235] 


HORATI 


&%> 


2J5    vcrbaque,  Pisones,  Satyrorum  scriptor  amabo; 
nee  sic  enitar  tragico  differre  colori, 
ut  nihil  intersit,  Davusne  loquat^TeTaudax 
Pythias,  emuncto  lucrata  Simone  talentum, 
an  custos  famulusque  dei  Silenus  alumni. 

240    Ex  noto  fictum  carmen  sequar,  ut  sibi  quivis 
speret  idem,  sudet  multum  frustraque  laboret 
ausus  idem  :  tantum  series  iuncturaque  pollet, 
tantum  de  medio  sumptis  accedit  honoris. 


pijfWTa,  standing   for  all  lan- 
guage; cf.  Sat.  i,  3,  103. 

235.  The  address  to  the  Pisones 
at  this  point  is  consistent  with  the 
more  personal  and  direct  tone  of 
the  whole  discussion  of  the  Satyr 
plays,  and  supports  the  view  that 
the  matter  was  one  of  living  inter- 
est at  the  time.  —  scriptor  :    this 
also  maintains  the  tone  of  direct 
interest,  but  does  not,  of  course, 
mean  that  Horace  himself  intended 
to  write  for  the  stage. 

236.  nee  sic :  '  nor  should  I  be 
satisfied  with  a  mere   distinction 
between  the  tragic  and  the  comic 
style,  without  observing  also  the 
finer  distinctions  between  the  dif- 
ferent characters.1 

237-239.  Davus  :  a  standing 
name  for  a  slave  in  comedy.  — 
Pythias  :  this  name  for  the  arguta 
meretrix  (Sat .  i,  10,40)  happens 
not  to  be  used  in  any  extant 
comedy.  —  emuncto  :  one  of  the 
many  slang  words  used  in  comedy 
for  cheating  ;  perhaps  swiped.  — 
Simone  :  an  old  man  ;  Chreraes  is 


used  as  the  typical  name  in  the 
corresponding  passage  in  Sat.  i, 
10,  40  ff.  —  The  names  and  the 
situation  all  refer  to  the  comoedia 
palliata,  like  the  plays  of  Terence, 
the  style  of  which,  it  is  implied,  is 
not  to  be  used  in  a  Satyr  play.  — 
Silenus :  the  old  guardian  and 
attendant  of  the  youthful  Diony- 
sus, fond  of  wine,  but  also  a  kind 
of  philosopher. 

240-243.  This  passage  contains 
a  summary  of  Horace's  own  ideal 
in  style,  of  wider  application  than 
is  given  to  it  here.  —  noto  fictum  : 
the  same  general  contrast  as  that 
expressed  in  vs.  151,  sic  ver is  falsa 
remiscet.  —  speret :  i.e.,  the  style 
shall  seem  easy  enough  to  tempt 
any  one  to  try  it.  —  idem,  idem  : 
intentionally  repeated  in  the  same 
place  in  the  verse.  —  series  iunc- 
turaque :  cf.  callida  imtctnra, 
47  f. ;  but  here  the  thought  is 
broader,  including  all  the  more 
general  characteristics  of  style, 
not  the  meaning  of  words  only. 
—  de  medio  sumptis :  ordinary 


216 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  3,  254 


245 


250 


Silvis  deduct!  caveant,  me  iudice,  Fauni, 
ne  velut  innati  triviis  ac  paene  forenses 
aut  nimium  teneris  iuvenentur  versibus  unquam, 
aut  immunda  crepent  ignominiosaque  dicta  : 
offenduntur  enim,  quibus  est  equus  et  pater  et  res, 
nee  si  quid  fricti  ciceris  probat  et  nucis  emptor, 
aequis  accipiunt  animis  donantve  corona. 
Syllaba  longa  brevi  subiec1;a  vocatur  iambus, 
€Sj:itus  :  unde  etiam  trimetfis  adcrescere  iussit 
nomen  iambeis  cum  senos  redderet  ictus, 
primus  ad  extremum  similis  sibi  :  non  ita  pridem, 


words,  out  of  which  skillful  use  can 
make  a  style  that  has  distinction. 

244.  Fauni:  the  Italian  equiva- 
lent for  the  satyrs. 

245.  innati  triviis,  forenses :  the 
wild  creatures  of  the  woods  must 
not  use  the  language  of  street  boys 
or  even  the  more  cultivated  speech 
of  those  who  attend  the  law  courts. 

246.  teneris  .  .  .  versibus :  sen- 
timental   love   songs,  expressions 
alien    to    the    free    spirit    of  the 
Fauns. — iuvenentur:  sport,  play 
the    invents  ;    formed    like    the 
Greek  veavtevecr&u. 

247.  The     Satyr     plays     were 
coarse,    but    they    should    avoid 
vicious  and  indecent  expressions. 

248-250.  equus :  with  reference 
to  the  providing  of  a  horse  for  the 
equites  in  the  early  time,  when  the 
word  had  a  military  meaning.  — 
et  pater:  the  free-born  citizens. — 
et  res  :  the  persons  of  property  and 
standing  and,  presumably,  of  culti- 
vation. —  fricti :  parched;  from 


frigo.  —  corona :  symbolic,  since 
there  were  no  formal  contests  at 
Rome.  —  It  is  to  be  noticed  that 
from  vs.  231  the  thought  is  almost 
wholly  Roman. 

251-269.  On  meter  and  versifi- 
cation. 

251.  The  fact  that  an  iambus 
consists  of  a  short  followed  by  a 
long  is  stated  rather  formally,  in 
order  to  make  a  proper  starting 
point  for  the  discussion  of  the  use 
of  spondees. 

252-253.  unde :  t'.e.,  because  it 
is  a  '  quick  foot.'  —  The  construc- 
tion is  iambeis  nomen  trimetris 
adcrescere  iussit',  iambeis  is  dat. 
after  adcrescere  and  trimetris  is 
attracted  into  the  same  case  ;  '  for 
which  reason  it  bade  the  name 
trimeter  attach  itself  to  iambic 
lines,'  although  there  were  six  feet 
and  one  might  expect  the  name 
hexameter.  Cf.  Sat.  i,  3,  57,  UK 
tar  do  cognomen  damns. 

254.   similis  sibi  •    all  the   feet 


217 


2.  3.  255J 


HORATI 


255     tardior  ut  paullo  graviorque  veniret  ad  aures, 
spondees  stabiles  in  iura  paterna  recepit 
commodus  et  patiens,  non  ut  de  sedesecunda 
cederet  aut  quarta  socialiter.     Hi^ret  in  Acci 
nobilibus  trimetris  apparet  rarus,  et  Enni 
in  scaenam  missos  magno  cum  pondere  versus 
aut  operae  celeris  nimium  curaque  carentis 
aut  ignoratae  premit  artis  crimine  turpi. 
Non  quivis  videt  immodulata  poemata  iudex, 
et  data  Romanis  venia  est  indigna  poetis. 

265     Idcircone  vager  scribamque  licenter  ?     An  omnes 
visuros  peccata  putem  mea,  tutus  et  intra 
spem  veniae  cautus  ?     Vitavi  denique  culpam, 


being  iambi.  —  non  ita  pridem: 
these  words  are  not  quite  intelli- 
gible, since  spondees  had  been 
used  in  iambic  trimeters  from  the 
earliest  times.  [None  of  the  vari- 
ous explanations  is  really  good. 
Cic.  Brut.  10,  41  is  not  a  parallel.] 

256.  stabiles  :  heavy  in  compar- 
ison with  the  lightly  running  iambi. 
—  in  iura  paterna :  adopted  them 
legally. 

257.  non  ut:    'but   not  to  the 
extent  of  admitting  them  to  the 
second  or  fourth  foot.' 

258.  socialiter :    'like   an   ally,' 
like  one  who  made  a  partnership 
on  absolutely  equal   terms.     The 
personification  of  the  iambus  goes 
through  the  whole  passage,  tussif, 
recepit)  commodus  et  pattens,  ce- 
deret. 

159-262.   'In  Roman  poets  the 
frequency     of     spondees     makes 


the  verse  too  heavy.1  —  hie  :  the 
iambus.  —  nobilibus :  well-known, 
without  approval,  which  would  be 
inconsistent  with  the  context.  — 
rarus :  this  supplies,  in  thought, 
the  subject  of  premit ;  'and  the 
rarity  of  it  in  the  verses  of  Ennius.1 
—  in  scaenam  missos :  his  verses 
in  drama,  as  distinct  from  his  epic 
poetry.  —  operae :  with  crimine,  as 
artis  is,  and  modified  by  nimium 
celeris  and  carentis. 

263-264.  non  quivis  :  the  mean- 
ing of  the  general  phrase  appears 
in  Romanis.  —  indigna  :  unde- 
served] strictly,  '  pardon  that  the 
giver  should  think  it  unworthy  of 
himself  to  bestow.' 

265.  idcirco:  *>.,  'because  I 
know  that  the  judge  is  not  strict.' 

266-267.  tutus  et  .  .  .  cautus : 
<  or  shall  I  be  just  careful  enough 
to  keep  within  the  law?' 

218 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  3.  276 


non  laudem  merui.     Vos  exemplaria  Graeca 
nocturna  versate  manu,  versate  diurna. 

270    At  vestri  proavi  Plautinos  et  numeros  et 

laudavere  sales,  nimium  patienter  utrumque, 
ne  dicam  stulte,  mirati,  si  modo  ego  et  vos 
scimus  inurbanum  lepido  seponere  dicto, 
legitimumque  sonum  digitis  callemus  et  aure. 

275    Ignotum  tragicae  genus  invenisse  Camenae 
dicitur  et  plaustris  vexisse  poemata  Thespis, 


268.  non  .  .  .  merui:  'there  is 
no  positive  merit  in  that  course.1 — 
vos:  emphatic;  'you,  who  surely 
desire  laudem  merere."1 

270-294.  On  the  need  of  study 
and  care  in  the  writing  of  poetry, 
as  shown  in  the  history  of  the 
Greek  drama. 

270.  proavi :  in  a  general  sense, 
waiores.  —  Plautinos:  for  Horace's 
judgment  on  Plautus  see  Epist.  2, 
i,  170  ff.  and  note.  —  numeros; 
this  may  be  a  reference  to  the 
verses  which  were  supposed  to  be 
Plautus's  own  epitaph,  in  which 
the  phrase  numeri  innumeri  is 
used.  Plautus  was,  in  fact,  an  ex- 
tremely good  versifier,  but  of  a 
sort  that  Horace  did  not  appre- 
ciate. 

271-272.  patienter:  i.e.,  they 
should  not  have  endured  them, 
much  less  admired  them. 

273.  inurbanum  lepido :  with  ref- 
erence to  the  safes.  The  word 
lepidus,  which  Horace  uses  rarely, 
is  one  of  the  commonest  adjectives 
in  Plautus  and  is  chosen  here  for 


that  reason.  The  standard  of  ur- 
banitas  is  better  suited  to  the  Au- 
gustan age  than  to  the  time  of  the 
Second  Punic  War. 

274.  sonum :  the  numeri.   Hor- 
ace's judgment  on  this  point  also, 
as  on   the  wit  of  Plautus,  is  too 
narrow,   like    the  judgment  of  a 
Queen  Anne   writer    on    a    poet 
of     the     Elizabethan     period.  — 
digitis :     this  seems  to  be  tradi- 
tional ;     Horace    did    not    count 
the    feet    of  his    Alcaics    on    his 
fingers.     But  it  is   true   that   the 
natural  feeling  for  the  free  early 
versification    had,    in    part,    died 
out  under  the  impulse  toward  fin- 
ished accuracy. 

275.  The  order  of  thought  here 
is  more  important  than  the  gram- 
matical structure ;  '  tragedy  was  an 
unknown  kind  of  poetry  before  its 
invention,  according  to  tradition, 
by  Thespis.' 

276.  plaustris :    the   source   of 
this   curious   tradition,  which  ap- 
pears only  here,  is  unknown,  nor  is 
it  possible  to  discover  what  error 


219 


i 


2.  3.  277] 

jy  -     v 

quae  caiierent  agerentque  peruncti  faecibus  ora. 
Post  hunc,  personae  pallaeque  repertor  honestae, 
Aeschylus  et  modicis  instravit  pulpita  tignis 

280    et  docuit  magnumque  loqui  nitique  cothurno. 
Successit  vetus  his  comoedia,  non  sine  multa 
laude,  sed  in  .vitium  libertas  excidit  et  vim 
dignam  lege  regi  :  lex  est  accepta  chorusque 
turpiter  obticuit  sublato  iure  nocendi. 

285    Nil  intentatum  nostri  liquere  poetae ; 


of  interpretation  gave  rise  to  it.  — 
Thespis  :  the  '  inventor '  of  trag- 
edy, as  Homer  was  of  the  epic 
and  Archilochus  of  iambics.  But, 
properly  understood,  no  form  of 
art  was  ever  invented. 

277.  canerent,  agerent :  Horace 
uses  the  plural  a  little  carelessly, 
in  speaking  of  a  play  in  which 
there  was  only  one  actor.  —  per- 
uncti faecibus :  this  quite  uncer- 
tain tradition,  if  it  has  any  founda- 
tion in  fact,  has  to  do  with  comedy, 
not  with  tragedy. 

278-280.  The  innovations  here 
attributed  to  Aeschylus  are  the 
"mask,  the  special  dress,  the  ele- 
vated wooden  stage,  and  the  thick- 
soled  tragic  boot.  There  are  traces 
of  these  traditions  in  various  au- 
thors, but  the  source  from  which 
Horace  derived  them  is  unknown. 
—  bonestae  :  dignified;  vi\t\\pallae 
only,  not  with  personae.  —  modi- 
cis :  a  qualification  of  the  tradi- 
tion :  the  first  stage  would  natu- 
rally be  thought  of  as  small.  — 
magnum  loqui :  inserted  into  the 


account  of  the  stage  machinery  to 
go  with  nili. 

281.  vetus:  dp^ata;  the  techni- 
cal name  for  the  comedy  of  which 
Aristophanes  is  the  only  extant 
representative.  Cf.  Sat.  1,4,  1-2; 
I,  10,  1 6  f. 

282-283.  libertas:  so  Sat.  I,  4, 
5,  multa  cum  liber t ate  notabant. 
( But  this  freedom  degenerated 
{excidit)  into  a  fault.'  —  vim:  the 
technical  word  for  '  assault,'  '  ille- 
gal violence.'  —  lege  :  the  accounts 
are  somewhat  confused  and  it  is 
more  probable  that  the  law  against 
extreme  personalities  on  the  stage 
had  nothing  to  do  with  the  decline 
of  the  chorus. 

284.  turpiter :  with  obticuit ;  the 
silence  was  discreditable  because 
it  was,  as  Horace  understood  it, 
the  result  of  the  withdrawal  of  the 
right  to  do  harm.  —  This  reference 
to  the  loss  of  the  chorus  has,  in 
fact,  nothing  to  do  with  the  main 
thought,  and  comedy  is  mentioned 
only  to  lead  up  to  the  general 
statement  nil  intentatum. 


220 


EPISTVLAE 


O.  3.  295 


nec  minimum  meruere  decus  vestigia  Graeca 
ausi  deserere  et  celebrare  domestica  facta, 
vel  qui  praetextas  vel  qui  docuere  togatas. 
Nec  virtute  foret  clarisve  potentius  armis 

290    quam  lingua  Latium  si  non  offenderet  unum- 

quemque  poetarum  limae  labor  et  mora.     Vos,  O 
Pompilius  sanguis,  carmen  reprehendite,  quod  non 
multa  dies  et  multa  litura  coercuit  atque 
praesectum  decies  non  castigavit  ad  unguem. 

295    Ingenium  misera  quia  fortunatius  arte 


286.  nec  minimum:   />.,   'and 
not  the  least  of  their  merits  is  the 
fact  that  they   have  shown  inde- 
pendence.' 

287.  domestica  facta:  i.e.,  l that 
they   have   used   native    material, 
Roman  legends.' 

288.  praetextas:    sc.  fabulas ; 
tragedies  on  themes  from  Roman 
history,  like  the  Brutus  of  Accius. 
The   name  came   from    the    toga 
praetexta    worn    by   the    Roman 
generals  and    heroes    who   were 
represented  in  the  plays.  — toga- 
tas :    comedies   in  which    Roman 
citizens  appeared,  wearing  the  or- 
dinary toga.  —  docuere:  the  tech- 
nical word  for  the  poet's  part  in 
preparing  the  play  for  presentation 
by  'teaching'  it  to  the  actors. 

289-290.  virtute  .  .  .  armis :  a 
double  expression  for  a  single 
idea.  —  lingua :  for  literature  in 
general. 

291.  This  thought  is  often  ex- 
pressed by  Horace  ;  Sat.  i.  4, 12  f. ; 
I,  10,  68-72;  Epist.  2,  i,  167. 


292.  Pompilius  sanguis:  the 
claim  of  the  Calpurnii  (Pisones) 
was  that  they  were  descended  from 
Numa  Pompilius  through  a  son 
Calpus.  This  form  of  address  is 
hardly  more  than  a  variation  on 
Pisones. 

294.  praesectum  ...  ad  unguem : 
cf.  Sat.  i,  5,  32,  ad  unguem  fact  us 
homo;  the  figure  is  taken  from  the 
testing  of  the  smoothness  of  a  sur- 
face   by   passing   the    thumb  nail 
over  it ;  the  closely  cut  nail  (prae- 
sectum)   would  be  especially  sen- 
sitive. —  castigavit :     general    in 
meaning    {correct 'ed,  restrained),- 
not  continuing  the  figure  of  prun- 
ing, which  is  faintly  suggested  by 
coercuit. 

295.  misera,    fortunatius:    the 
words  are  quoted,  as  it  were,  from 
the  poets,  who  were  expressing  in 
vivid  language  their  acceptance  of 
the  dictum  of  Democritus ;  labor 
seemed  to  them  wretched  and  they 
trusted    to    their    talent  for  sue- 


221 


2,  3.  296] 


HORATI 


credit  et  excludit  sanos  Helicone  poetas 
Democritus,  bona  pars  non  unguis  ponere  curat, 
non  barbam  ;  secreta  petit  loca,  balnea  vitat. 
Nanciscetur  enim  pretium  nomenque  poetae, 

300     si  tribus  Anticyris  caput  insanabile  nunquara 
tonsori  Licino  commiserit.     O  ego  laevus, 
qui  purgor  bilem  sub  verni  temporis  horam ! 
Non  alms  faceret  meliora  poemata.     Verum 
nil  tanti  est :  ergo  f ungar  vice  cotis,  acutum 

305     reddere  quae  ferrum  valet,  exsors  ipsa  secandi: 
munus  et  officium  nil  scribens  ipse  docebo, 
unde  parentur  opes,  quid  alat  formetque  poetam, 


897.  Democritus :  Cicero  (de 
Dili,  i,  37,  80)  records  it  in  this 
form;  'negat  sine  furore  De- 
mocritus quemquam  poetam  mag- 
num esse  posse.1  —  bona  pars : 
'  most  poets.'  —  non  .  . .  curat : '  do 
not  take  the  trouble.1  The  neglect 
of  personal  appearance  seems  to 
them  evidence  of  inspiration.  It  is 
most  curious  that  this  tradition 
should  still  persist  among  mu- 
sicians and  painters. 

299.  nanciscetur :  i.e.,    l  he  be- 
lieves that  he  will  obtain  .  .  .' 

300.  tribus  Anticyris :    cf.   Sat. 
2>  3>  83,  where  it  is  said  that  all 
Anticyra  must  be  reserved  for  the 
avari. 

301.  Licino :   there  is  doubtless 
some  point  in  the  use  of  a  proper 
name   here,   but   the   man  is  un- 
known and  the   point   is   lost. — 
laevus  :  '  fool  that  I  am  ! ' 

302.  verni :  the    time    of   year 
when    it    was    held    (Celsus,    2, 


13)    that    purgatives    should    be 
used. 

303.  faceret :  /.  e.,  '  if  I  were  not 
so  foolish  as  to  use  purgatives.' 

304.  nil    tanti    est:     'it    isn't 
worth    while,1    '  I    don't    care   so 
much  as  all   that   about  it1;   an 
expression  of  indifference  ;  cf.  Cic. 
Alt.  2,  13,  2  ;  5,  8,  3.  —  cotis :  this 
is  the  reply  of  Isocrates  when  he 
was  asked  why  he  taught  others 
the  art  of  oratory. 

306.  This  is  the  literal  state- 
ment, explaining  and  applying  the 
anecdote.  —  munus  et  officium: 
function  and  duty  of  the  poet ; 
the  two  words  express  merely  two 
slightly  different  sides  of  one  idea. 
—  nil  scribens :  referring  to  his  re- 
peatedly expressed  determination 
to  write  no  more  lyric  poetry ; 
such  a  sermo  as  this  is  not  poetry. 

307-308.  These  clauses  are  not 
a  table  of  contents  of  the  rest 
of  the  Epistle,  nor  are  they  a 


222 


EPISTVLAE 


O,  3. 


quid  deceat,  quid  non,  quo  virtus,  quo  ferat  error. 

Scribendi  recte  sapere  est  et  principium  et  fon§. 

310    Rem  tibi  Socraticae  poterunt  ostendere  chartae, 

verbaque  provisam  rem  non  invita  sequentur. 

Qui  didicit,  patriae  quid  debeat  et  quid  amicis  ; 

quo  sit  amore  parens,  quo  f rater  amandus  et  hospes; 

quod  sit  conscripti,  quod  iudicis  officium ;  quae 
315    partes  in  bellum  missi  ducis :  ille  profecto 

reddere  personae  scit  convenientia  cuique. 


formal  and  complete  outline  of  an 
Art  of  Poetry.  They  are  merely 
amplifications  of  munus  et  offi- 
cium, specifying  certain  aspects 
of  poetic  art  and  corresponding 
only  by  accident  and  in  the  most 
general  way  with  the  discussions 
that  follow.  —  opes :  powers ;  i.e., 
'what  will  best  furnish  him  with 
material  and  prepare  him  to  write.1 
—  quid  deceat :  '  standards  of 
taste.'  —  virtus,  error:  in  a  very 
general  sense,  'the  right  path  and 
the  wrong,1  '  a  true  understanding 
of  poetry  and  a  mistaken  judgment 
about  it.' 

309.  scribendi  recte :  as  in  Sat. 
1,4,  13,  with  emphasis  upon  a  high 
standard.  — sapere :   wisdom,  with 
secondary  reference  to  philosophy 
and  in  contrast  to  the    thought 
of  295  ff. 

310.  rem:    the    material,     the 
things  to  write  about ;  not  exactly 
'subject-matter,1  but  the  ideas  to 
be  expressed.  —  Socraticae  .  .  . 
chartae:      these    are    named   for 
illustration  only,  not  as  exclusive 
sources.   The  important '  Socratic1 


writers  are  Plato  and  Xenophon.  — 
poterunt :  '  they  will,  for  example, 
contain  such  suggestion  as  you 
need.' 

311.  rem . . .  sequentur :  this  rule 
appears  in  various  forms,  most 
concisely  in  Cato's  rein  tene,  verba 
sequentur,  and  humorously  in  the 
saying  of  Asinius  Pollio,  male 
hercle  eveniat  verbis,  nisi  rem  se- 
quantur. 

314.  conscripti:  councilor;  the 
word  is  familiar  in  the  formula 
patres  conscripti,  but  is  here  used 
in  a  more  general  sense,  as  in 
inscriptions  (neve  ibi  senator  neve 
decurio  neve  conscriptus  esto, 
C.I.L.,  I,  206,  96).  This  is  the 
only  passage  except  in  inscriptions 
where  the  word  is  used  alone  with- 
out pater.  —  iudicis :  such  an 
official  combined  some  of  the 
functions  now  divided  between 
the  judge  and  the  jury ;  cf.  Sat. 
i>  4,  23. 

316.  personae :  dramatic  poetry 
is  here,  as  in  so  much  of  this 
Epistle,  uppermost  in  Horace^ 
mind.  —  convenientia:  i.e.t  to 


223 


320 


325 


HORATI 


Respicere  exemplar  vitae  morumque  iubebo 
doctum  imitatorem  et  vivas  hinc  ducere  voces. 
Interdum  speciosa  locis  morataque  recte 
fabula  nullius  veneris  sine  pondere  et  arte 
valdius  oblectat  populum  meliusque  moratur, 
quam  versus  inopes  rerum  nugaeque  canorae. 
Graiis  ingenium,  Graiis  dedit  ore  rotundo 
Musa  loqui,  praeter  laudem  nullius  avaris.^- 
Romani  pueri  longis  rationibus  assem 
discunt  in  partes  centum  diducere.     '  Dicat 
films  Albini:  Si  de  quincunce  remota  est 


x 
make  the  speech  of  each  character 

suitable  to  the  part  he  plays  in  life. 

317-318.  '  The  poet  who  desires 
that  his  work  should  be  a  reflec- 
tion of  life  (imitatoreni)  and  who 
has  learned  the  principles  of  life 
and  art  from  study  {doctum  =  qui 
didicif)  will  then  turn  to  life  itself, 
to  the  observation  of  character 
(morum),  and  from  this,  as  from  a 
model,  will  learn  to  give  vividness 
to  the  speeches  (vivas  voces)  of 
the  persons  of  his  drama.' 

319-322.  'For  a  vivid  and  life- 
like portrayal  of  character  is  often 
more  effective  than  a  merely  artis- 
tic finish.'  —  speciosa  locis:  /.*., 
'  which  contains  vivid  and  at- 
tractive passages  (vivas  voces), 
speeches  that  attract  the  atten- 
tion of  the  hearer'  ;  cf.  Epist. 
2,  i,  223.  —  morataque  recte: 
'  in  which  the  speeches  conform 
properly  to  the  characters  that 
utter  them.'  as  is  suggested  in 
exemplar  morum.  —  nullius  ve- 


neris :  <  without  the  attractiveness 
of  lofty  words  (sine  pondere)  or 
artistic  polish.'  The  thought  is 
again  expressed  by  contrast  in 
inopes  rerum  nugaeque  canorae. 
323-332.  '  It  is  to  the  Greeks 
that  philosophy  and  art  have  given 
the  power  to  realize  these  ideals.' 

324.  avaris:  the  word  is  selected 
in  anticipation  of  the  thought  that 
follows  ;  '  for  the  Greeks  are  eager 
only  for  glory,  while  we  Romans 
are  avari  in  a  worse  sense.' 

325.  longis  rationibus:    'long 
calculations'  like  the  'examples' 
in  arithmetic. 

326.  centum:    the  as  was  di- 
vided into  twelfths,   unciae,  and 
the  Roman  reckonings  were  based 
in  part  on  a  duodecimal  system. 
But  they  also  used  a  decimal  sys- 
tem and  in  partes  centum  diducere 
means,  in  effect,   'to  reduce  the 
duodecimal  system  to  decimals.' 

327-330.    A  school  recitation  in 
arithmetic ;  filius    Albini   is    the 


224 


fcflSTVLAE 


fa,  3,  14 


330 


uncia,  quid  superat  ?    Poteras  dixisse.'    'Triens.'     '  Ku! 
rem  poteris  servare  tuam  !     Redit  uncia,  quid  fit  ? ' 
'  Semis.'     An,  haec  animos  aerugo  et  cura  peculi 
cum  semel  imbuerit,  speramus  carmina  fingi 
posse  linenda  cedro  et  Kfvi  servanda  cupresso  ? 
Aut  prodesse  volunt,  aut  delectare  poetae, 
aut  simul  et  iucunda  et  idonea_dicerejdtaer 
Quicquid  praecipies,  esto  brevis,  ut  cito  dicta 
_j3ercipiant  animi  dociles  teneantque  fideles. 
Omne  supervacuum  pleno  de  pectore  manat.       1-^,^^, 
^icta  voluptatis  causa  sint  proxima  veris, 
ne,  quodcumque  volet,  poscat  sibi  fabula  credi,    f 
neu  pransae  Lamiae  vivum  puerum  extrahat  alvo. 
Centuriae  seniorum  agitant  expertia  frugis; 


pupil  who  is  called  upon  to  recite  ; '    from  bookworms.  -*-  levi  .  .  .  cu- 


the  problem  is  in  the  addition  and 
subtraction  of  simple  fractions. 
—  quincunce :  quinque  unciae, 
five-twelfths.  —  triens :  i.e.,  it 
is  not  enough  to  answer  four 
twelfths ;  the  boy  must  also  be 
able  to  reduce  the  fraction  to  its 
lowest  terms,  one  third.  —  redit : 
not  the  putting  back  of  the  uncia 
taken  away,  but  a  new  problem ; 
is  added. 

330.  aerugo:  canker ',  rust,  as 
consuming  the  metal ;  cf.  Sat. 
I,  4,  1 01. — peculi:  with  cura 
Dnly ;  the  word  has  here  some 
slighting  force,  since  it  is  used 
chiefly  of  the  small  property  of  a 
child  or  slave. 

332.  linenda  .  .  .:  i.e.,  'deserv- 
ing of  immortality.'  Oil  of  cedar 
was  used  to  preserve  the  papyrus 


presso :  the  cypress  wood  took  a 
high  polish,  and  cases  made  of  it 
would  be  especially  fine. 

334.  iucunda,  idonea  . . .  vitae: 
these  repeat  prodesse  and  delectare 
in  reversed  order. 

335.  quicquid  praecipies:    i.e., 
'if  you  choose  prodesse,  idonea 
vitae,  to  write  a  didactic  poem.' 
—  cito :  with  dicta ;  —  brevia. 

336.  dociles,  fideles:   predicate. 

338.  ficta:  the  other  alterna- 
tives ;  '  if  you  choose  iucunda,  de- 
lectare, to  write  poems  to  give  pleas- 
ure only.'  —  proxima  veris :  i.e., 
not  at  variance  with  probabilities. 

340.  Lamiae  :  a  monstrous  crea- 
ture that  devoured  children  alive. 

341.  centuriae:  this  word  sug- 
gests the  figure  of  an  election.  — 
seniorum :  the  citizens  above  forty- 


HOR.  EP.  —  15 


225 


2,  3,  342.1 


HORATI 


345 


35° 


praetereunt  austera  poemata  Ramnes: 
pmne  tulit  punctum  qui  miscuit  utile  dulci 
lectorem  delectando  pariterque  monendo. 
Hie  meret  aera  liber  Sosiis,  hie  et  mare  transit 

et  longum  noto  scriptori  prorogat  aevum. 

..  r    .  -OQjvi-e^  nay- 

Sunt  dehcta  tamen,  quibus  igfiovisse  vehmus  :    r 

nam  neque  chorda  sonum  reddit,  quern  vult  manus  et 

mens,  jpLLtdkirt*  ^^ 

poscentique  gravem  persaepe  remittit  acutum, 
nee  semper  feriet  quodcumque  minabitur  arcus. 
Verum  ubi  plura  nitent  in  carmine,  non  ego  paucis 
offendar  maculis,  quas  aut  incuria  fudit, 
aut  humana  parum  cavit  natura.     Quid  ergo  est? 
Vt  scriptor  si  peccat  idem  librarius  usque, 


five.  —  expertia  frugis:  poems 
that  are  not  didactic,  but  iucunda. 

342.  celsi. . .  Ramnes:  the  knights 
were  the  younger  citizens,  proud 
of  their  position  and  their  old 
name. — austera:  poems  that  are 
merely  didactic,  not  iucunda. 

343-344-  omne  . . .  punctum  :  i.e., 
both  old  and  young;  cf.  Epist. 
2,  2,  99,  note.  —  Vs.  341  corre- 
sponds to  the  first  half  of  vs.  333, 
vs.  342  to  the  second  half,  and  vss. 
343-344  to  vs.  334. 

345.  Sosiis  :  the  booksellers,  al- 
ready mentioned  in  Epist.  I,  20,2. 

346.  This  verse  returns,  as  a 
kind  of  summary,  to  the  thought 
of  vs.  332. 

347.  tamen:    i.e.,  *  though    I 
thus  hold  up  the  ideal,  I  recognize 
the  tact  that  it  is  difficult  of  attain- 
ment1 


348-350.  The  comparison,  as  so 
often  in  Horace,  is  merely  implied  ; 
'such  failings  of  a  poet  are  like  the 
mistakes  of  the  musician  or  the 
archer.'  —  gravem :  low.  —  per- 
saepe :  there  is  an  apologetic  tone 
in  this  word ;  -very  often,  so  weak 
is  human  skill. — feriet ;  the  future 
tense,  instead  of  the  present  reddit, 
remittit,  represents  the  archer  as 
already  excusing  his  possible  miss, 
before  he  shoots. 

352.  offendar  maculis:  this  is 
the  doctrine  QiSat.  I,  3,  68  ff.  and 
almost  the  same  form  of  expression 
as  that  in  Sat.  i,  6,  65-67.  The 
use  of  maculis  anticipates  the  com- 
parison of  vs.  354. — fudit:  as  ii 
by  the  spilling  of  ink. 

354.  scriptor  .  .  .  librarius  :  a 
slave  who  copied  books,  in  the 
Roman  way. 


EPISTVLAE 


,  3.  363 


355    quamvis  est  monitus,  venia  caret,  et  citharoedus 
ridetur,  chorda  qui  semper  oberrat  eadem  : 
sic  mihi,  qui  multum  cessat,  fit  Choerilus  ille, 
quern  bis  terve  bonum  cum  risu  miror;  et  idem 
indignor  quandoque  bonus  dormitat  Homerus^ 

360    verum  operi  longo  fas  est  obrepere  somnum. 
Vt  pictura,  poesis;  erit  quae,  si  propius  stes, 
te  capiat  magis,  et  quaedam,  si  longius  abstes; 
haec  amat  obscurum ;  volet  haec  sub  luce  videri, 


355.  venia  caret :  *  can  no  longer 
be  pardoned.' 

357.  qui  multum  cessat  :  this 
corresponds  to  peccat  idem  and 
semper  oberrat.  —  Choerilus  ille  : 
Epist.  2,  I,  233. 

358-360.  cum  risu  miror :  /.*., '  he 
is  generally  so  poor  that,  when 
once  or  twice  he  says  a  good  thing, 
it  only  makes  me  laugh  and  won- 
der how  he  came  to  do  it.'  —  idem : 
with  adversative  implication,  as 
often ;  '  and,  on  the  other  hand.' 

—  indignor :  not  '  I  am  angry,'  but 
in  its   proper  sense,  'I   count  it 
unworthy   of  him.'  —  quandoque: 
-=  qnandocumque ;     the    different 
forms  of  the  indefinite  relative  were 
never  as  clearly  differentiated  in 
usage  as  they  are  in  the  grammars. 

—  bonus:    a  standing  epithet.  — 
dormitat:  cf.  dormire,  Sat.  2,  I,  7, 
in  a  figurative  sense  not  unlike 
this.  —  Vs.  360  is  a  humorous  ex- 
cuse playing  upon  the  literal  sense 
ot  dormitat.  —  The  thought  here  is 
only  apparently  contradictory   to 
vs.  347  and  vs?.  351  f. ;   non  ego 


paucis  offendar  maculis  means  '  I 
will  not  condemn  a  whole  poem 
for  a  few  faults';  indignor  .  .  . 
Homerrts  does  not  mean  '  I  am 
angry  with  Homer  for  his  few 
faults,'  but  rather  '  I  so  admire 
Homer  that,  when  he  makes  an 
occasional  slip,  my  only  feeling  is 
that  it  is  unworthy  of  so  great  a 
poet.'  The  word  indignor  is  not 
the  same  as  offendar ;  it  is  selected 
for  the  contrast  with  cum  risu 
miror  and  means  scarcely  more 
than  '  I  wonder  at  it,'  '  I  am  sur- 
prised.' 

361-365.  ut  pictura,  poesis :  the 
comparison  is  not  original ;  cf. 
Auct.  ad  Herenn.  4,  28,  39,  poema 
loquens  pictura,  pictitra  taciturn 
poema  debet  esse.  It  should  be 
noticed  that  the  comparison,  which 
is  suggested  by  the  thought  of  vss. 
347-360,  concerns  only  the  proper 
attitude  of  the  critic  toward  works 
of  art,  either  pictures  or  poems,  not 
their  essential  characteristics.  — In 
carrying  a  comparison  out  into 
details,  as  is  done  here,  there  is 


a,  3-  3 


HORATI 


iudicis  argutum  quae  non  formidat  acumen : 
365    haec  placuit  semel,  haec  decies  repetita  placebit. 
O  maior  iuvenum,  quamvis  et  voce  paterna 
fingeris  ad  rectum  et  per  te  sapis,  hoc  tibi  dictum 
tolle  memor,  certis  medium  et  tolerabile  rebus 
recte  concedi :  consultus  iuris  et  actor 
370    causarum  mediocris  abest  virtute  diserti 

Messallae,  nee  scit  quantum  Cascellius  Aulus, 
sed  tamen  in  pretio  est;  mediocribus  esse  poetis 
non  homines,  non  di,  non  concessere 


always  a  tendency  to  let  the  mind 
rest  upon  one  side,  sometimes  to 
the  exclusion  of  the  other  side. 
The  contrast  in  propius,  longins 
is  primarily  pictorial,  not  poetic, 
though  it  doubtless  means,  secon- 
darily, to  contrast  poetry  highly 
finished  in  details  with  poetry  on 
a  larger  scale,  like  an  epic.  But 
haec  amat  obscurum,  which  is  a 
very  just  remark  about  some  paint- 
ings, is  almost  meaningless  when 
used  of  a  poem.  The  last  line,  vs. 
365,  is  written  with  poetry  prima- 
rily in  mind  (repetita),  though  it 
applies  equally  well  to  a  picture. 

366.  maior    iuvenum:     this    is 
almost  the  only  personal  touch  in 
the  epistle,  and  it  is   not   certain 
that    this  address    to    the    elder 
brother  means  anything  more  than 
that  he  is  now  old  enough  to  be 
making  his  choice  of  a  career. 

367.  ad  rectum :   in  matters  of 
taste;  cf.  recte,  vs.   309.  —  perte 
sapis  :  a  polite  phrase  to  take  off 
the    edge  of   the    rather  earnest 

228 


advice,  as  in  the  first  lines  of  Epist, 
1,17,  satis  per  te  tibi  consults,  and 
Epist.  i,  1 8,  si  bene  te  novi.  —  hoc 
dictum  :  in  vss.  372  f. 

368.  tolle  memor :    i.e.,   '  carry 
away  with  you  and  store  in  your 
memory,'  as   if  the  epistle   were 
really  a  sermo.  —  medium  :  not  as 
Horace  often  uses   the  word,  but 
'  mediocre,1  '  moderately  good.' 

369.  consultus,  actor:    the  two 
branches  of  the  legal  profession, 
the  jurist  and  the  pleader. 

370.  mediocris:    the    emphatic 
word  ;  '  of  only  moderate  ability.' 
—  abest:  i.e., ( fails  to  attain  to.' 

371.  Messallae:   cf.  Sat.  i,  10, 
29,  note.     He  was  a  man  of  much 
distinction    in    several    fields.  — 
Cascellius :    distinguished   in   the 
Ciceronian  period  as  a  jurist  and 
an  orator.     He  was  probably  not 
living  at  this  time. 

372-373.  in  pretio:  of  value  i 
a  term  of  moderate  praise.  —  medi- 
ocribus :  dative  in  the  predicate ; 
cf.  Sat.  i,  i,  19,  licet  esse  beatis.  — 


EPISTVLAE 


.  3»  383 


Vt  gratas  inter  mensas  symphonia  discors 
375    et  crassum  unguentum  et  Sardo  cum  melle  papaver 

offendunt,  poterat  duel  quia  cena  sine  istis : 

sic  animis  natum  inventumque  poema  iuvandis, 

si  paullum  summo  decessit,  vergit  ad  imum. 

Ludere  qui  nescit,  campestribus  abstinet  armis, 
380    indoctusque  pilae  discive  trochive  quiescit, 

ne  spissae  risum  tollant  impune  coronae; 

qui  nescit  versus,  tamen  audet  fingere.     Quidni? 

Liber  et  ingenuus,  praesertim  census  equestrem 


This  is  the  dictum  of  vs.  367. 

—  columnae :  an  intentionally  lofty 
word  for  the  pilae  (Sat.  i,  4,  71), 
posts  in  front  of  the  shop  where 
announcements  of  books  or  copies 
of  the  books  themselves  were  hung 
to  attract  buyers.     There  is  also 
an  intentional  anticlimax  in  homi- 
nes, di,  columnae. 

374-376.  'This  is  true  of  any 
luxury;  only  the  best  is  really 
good.'  —  symphonia  discors :  to 
the  educated  Roman  leader,  ac- 
quainted with  Greek,  the  contra- 
diction in  these  words  would  be 
as  obvious  as  in  the  phrase  con- 
fordia  discors,  Epist.  I,  12,  19. 
Music  was  often  played  during  a 
dinner.  —  crassum :  thick,  coarse. 

—  Sardo :    of   inferior   quality.  — 
papaver:   the  seeds  of  the  white 
poppy.  —  duci :  carried  on. 

377.  natum :  so  of  a  wall,  Sat. 
2,  3,  8.  — The  distinction  between 
the  arts  which  have  to  do  only 
with  pleasure  and  cultivation  and 
those  which  serve  also  a  practical 


end  is  made  by  Cicero,  in  compar- 
ing the  actor  and  the  orator. 

379.  ludere :   the  general  sense 
which  this  word  has  when  stand- 
ing   alone    is    immediately    made 
definite    by    the    next    words .  — 
campestribus  .   .   .  armis :    those 
which  are  mentioned  in  the  next 
verse. 

380.  pilae:     Sat.    I,    5,   49. — 
disci:    Sat.    2,    2,   13,  where   (in 
vs.  n)  these  two  forms  of  Greek 
athletics  are  contrasted  with  hunt- 
ing and  riding. 

381.  impune:   i.e.,  there  would 
be  no  ground  on  which  the  player 
who  was  laughed  at  could  resent 
the  ridicule ;  justly,  properly. 

382.  qui    nescit :     this    is    the 
opinion  expressed  in  Epist.  2,  I, 
114-117,  under  a  slightly  different 
figure. 

382.  quidni:  why  not,  of  course  t 
In  this  phrase  ni  has  no  condi- 
tional force, 

383-384.  *He's  a  perfectly  re- 
spectable citizen.  Why  shouldn't 


229 


3.  3-HJ 


HORATI 


summam  nummorum,  vitioque  remotus  ab  omni. 

185    Tu  nihil  in  vita  dices  faciesve  Minerva;    . 

id  tibi  iudicium  esto,  ea  mens :  si  quid  tamen  olim 
scripseris,  in  Maeci  descendat  iudicis  aures, 
et  patris  et  nostras,  nonumque  prematur  in  annum, 
membranis  intus  positis.     Delere  licebit 

390    quod  non  edideris ;  nescit  vox  missa  reverti. 
Silvestris  homines  sacer  interpresque  deorum 


he  write  poetry  ? '  —  census :  the 
participle,  retaining  in  the  passive 
the  cognate  accus.  of  the  active. 
The  construction  is  rare.  —  vitio 
remotus :  so  sine  criming  in  a 
similar  description,  Epist.  I,  7, 
56. 

385.  tu:    referring  back  to  vs. 
366,  and  returning,  after  the  gen- 
eral remarks  of  vs.  374  ff.,  to  the 
personal  application.  —  nihil  .  .  . 
dices :    concessive    in    force    (cf. 
tamen),  like  quamvis  .  .  .  per  te 
salt's,  vs.   366   f.,   and  with   the 
same  courteous  intention.  — invita 
.  .  .  Minerva :    this    phrase   was 
proverbial    and    is    explained    by 
Cicero  (de  Off,  i,  31,  no),  invita 
Minerva,  ut  aiunt,  id  est,  adver- 
sante  et  repugnance  natura.     Mi- 
nerva is  here  the  goddess  of  the 
intellectual  powers. 

386.  id,  ea:     such.     The   con- 
struction  is   paratactic  for  'such 
Is  your  judgment  that  you  will 
say  nothing.  .  .  .' 

387.  Maeci :  Sp.  Maecius  Tarpa, 
named  in  Sat.  I,  10,  38  as  a  critic 
of  authority.     He  is  named  here 
merely  as  a  representative  of  the 


severe  criticism  to  which  the  writ- 
ings of  a  young  man  should  be 
submitted. 

388.  et  patris  et  nostras:  as 
critics  also,  though  perhaps  more 
friendly  critics.  —  nonum  ...  in  an- 
num :  this  famous  precept  is  not 
to  be  understood  literally  or  defi- 
nitely. The  meaning  is  that  a 
young  writer  should  hold  back 
his  work  for  mature  consideration 
and  revision.  The  number  (no- 
num) was  perhaps  chosen  because 
the  poet  Helvius  Cinna  spent  nine 
years  in  the  writing  and  correcting 
of  his  epic  Smyrna  (Catull.  95, 
1-2).  But  this  case  was  by  no 
means  unique ;  Vergil  spent  seven 
years  upon  the  Georgics  and  left 
the  Aeneid  unfinished  after  ten 
years  of  work  upon  it. 

390.  vox  missa :  the  expression 
is  figurative ;  literally,  it  refers  to 
the  spoken  word,  as  in  Epist.  I, 
1 8,  71,  semel  emissum  volat  irrevo- 
cabile  verbum. 

391-407.  'But,  on  the  other 
hand,  do  not  think  that  poetry  is 
too  light  an  occupation  for  a  seri- 
ous Roman,  for  it  has  contributed 


230 


EPISTVLAE 


[2.  3.  4 


caedibus  et  victu  foedo  deterruit  Orpheus, 
dictus  ob  hoc  lenire  tigres  rabidosque  leones; 
dictus  et  Amphion  Thebanae  conditor  urbis 

395    saxa  movere  sono  testudinis  et  prece  blanda 

ducere  quo  vellet.     Fuit  haec  sapientia  quondam, 
publica  privatis  secernere,  sacra  profanis, 
concubitu  prohibere  vago,  dare  iura  maritis, 
oppida  moliri,  leges  incidere  ligno. 

400    Sic  honor  et  nomen  divinis  vatibus  atque 


largely  to  the  movement  of  civili- 
zation.1 This  thought  is  repeated 
in  substance  in  Epist.  2,  I,  118- 
138.  But  the  tone  there  is  less 
historical  and  more  abstract,  and 
there  is  consequently  little  repe- 
tition of  phrases  or  illustrations. 

391.  silvestris :  /.<?.,  men  in  their 
primitive  state,  still  living  in  the 
woods .  —  sacer :  the  poet  is  vales, 
inspired  singer,  interpreter  of  the 
divine  will. 

392.  victu  foedo  :  i.e.,  the  acorns 
and  nuts  which  they  lived  upon  as 
the  animals  did.     The  adj.  foedo 
is  used  in  a  general  way  of  the 
kind  of  life,  rather  than  of  any- 
thing unpleasant  in  the  food  itself. 

393.  dictus  ob  hoc  :  'this  is  the 
origin  of  the  legend  of  his  taming 
tigers.' 

394.  dictus:  the  repetition  of  the 
word  at  the  beginning  of  the  line  is 
meant  to  suggest  that  the  story  of 
Amphion  is  also  a  legend,  the  real 
purpose  of  which  is  to  express  in 
vivid  form  the  power  of  the  singer. 

395-  prece :     his    song    moved 


rocks  as  it  moved  the  gods,  when 
it  was  addressed  to  them ;  cf. 
Epist.  2,  I,  135,  docta  prece 
blandus,  of  the  chorus. 

396.  haec :  referring  back  to  the 
work  of  Orpheus  and  Amphion, 
and  then  analyzed  and  explained 
in  the  following  infinitive  phrases. 

397-399.  Cf.  the  similar  account 
of  the  evolution  of  society  in  Sat. 
i,  3,  99-110,  where,  however,  it 
is  used  to  support  the  Epicurean 
doctrine  that  all  moral  ideas  are 
derived  from  utilitas.  —  concubitu 
.  .  .  vago :  "venerem  incertam  rapi- 
entis  more  ferarum,  Sat.  i,  3, 109. 
—  maritis:  'to  husband  and  wife.1 
The  regulation  of  marriage  was 
one  of  the  most  important  matters 
of  Roman  law.  —  ligno :  perhaps  a 
reference  to  the  tradition  that  the 
laws  of  Solon  were  made  public 
on  wooden  tablets.  But  there  is 
a  similar  tradition  in  regard  to  the 
Twelve  Tables. 

400.  sic :  because  poets  were 
leaders  in  all  these  civilizing 
movements. 


231 


HORATI 


carminibus  venit.     Post  hos  insignis  Homerus 
Tyrtaeusque  mares  animos  in  Martia  bella 
versibus  exacuit ;  dictae  per  carmina  sortes, 

' 
et  vitae  monstrata  via  est ;  et  gratia  regum 

405    Pieriis  ientata  modis,  ludusque  repertus, 
et  longorum  operum  finis:  ne-^orte  pudori 
sit  tibi  Musa  lyrae  sellers  et  cantor  Apollo. 
Natura  fieret  laudabile  carmen,  an  arte, 
quaesitum  est :  ego  nee  studium  sine  divite  vena, 

410    nee  rude  quid  prosit  video  ingenium  ;  alterius  sic 
altera  poscit  opem  res  et  coniurat  amice. 
Qui  studet  optatam  cursu  contingere  metam, 


401.  hos:    the  divinis  vatibus, 
of  whom  Orpheus  and  Amphion 
were  the  earliest  examples. 

402.  Tyrtaeus :    the   poet   who 
wrote    war  songs   and   marching 
songs   for   the    Spartans,   in    the 
seventh  century  B.C.  —  mares  :  as 
in  Epist.  I,  i,  64,  maribus  Curtis. 

403.  exacuit :     the    subject    is 
Homerus,    as   well   as   Tyrtaeus. 
Horace  frequently  uses  a  singular 
verb   with    several    singular  sub- 
jects.    The  thought  of  the  sen- 
tence is,  'poets  inspired  men  to 
deeds  of  valor,'  taking  up  again 
the  enumeration  of  the  services 
of  poetry  to   mankind.  —  sortes  : 
in  the  more  general  sense,  oracles, 
which  were  uttered  in  hexameters. 

404.  vitae  ...  via :    in   didactic 
poetry,  like  that  of  Hesiod.  —  gra- 
tia regum:    Pindar,  Bacchylides, 
Simonides  were  all  in  some  sense 
court  poets. 

405-406.   ludus  .  .  .  finis:  dra- 


matic poetry.  The  thought  is 
more  fully  expressed  in  Epist.  2, 
I,  139-142.  —  ne  forte  :  a  '  paren- 
thetic '  clause  of  purpose,  summa- 
rizing the  argument  of  vss.  391- 
406. 

408-415.  'Both  nature  and  art 
must  contribute  to  make  a  good 
poet  —  though  I  know  that  this  is 
not  the  accepted  doctrine.' 

408.  natura  ...  an  arte :    this 
was  an  old  question,  usually  an- 
swered  as    here   by  saying   that 
both  are  necessary.     Cf.,  e.g.,  Ci& 
pro  Arch.  7,  15. 

409.  studium :    =  ars.  —  vena  : 
of  precious  metals,  as  in  modern 
usage. 

410.  rude  . .  .  ingenium :  =  na- 
tura sine  arte. 

411.  amice :  i.e., '  it  is  a  mistake 
to  oppose  nature  and  skill,  as  if 
they  were  enemies ;  they  are  really 
close  friends.1 

412-415.   The  error  of  attempt- 


23* 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  3.  423 


multa  tulit  fecitque  puer,  sudavit  et  alsit, 
abstinuit  venere  et  vino.     Qui  Pythia  cantat 

415    tibicen,  didicit  prius  extimuitque  magistrum. 

Nunc  satis  est  dixisse  :  '  Ego  mira  poemata  pango  ; 
occupet  extremum  ScaBips ;  mihi  turpe  relinqui  est, 
et  quod  non  didici  sane  hescire  fateri.' 
Vt  praeco,  ad  merces  turbam  qui  cogit  emendas, 

•JMJiS>a<}s%ritatores  iubet  ad  |Sifr\irn  irepoeta 

dives  agris,  dives  posftis  in  f^emtfe  nummis.        / 
Si  vero  est,  unctum  qui  recte  ponere  possit, 
et  spondere  levi  pro  paupere,  et  eripere  artis 

Scholiast  says  that  this  is  part  of 
a  phrase  used  by  children  in  a 
game  and  gives  the  whole  chant, 
hdbeat  scabiem  quisquis  ad  me 
•venerit  novissimus  (arranged  in 
metrical  order).  Cf.  Epist.  i,  i, 
59,  note. 
418.  sane :  at  all,  with  nescire. 

420.  ad  lucrum:    'as   the  auc- 
tioneer   summons    a    crowd    who 
hope  to  make  something  by  buy- 
ing cheap,  so  the  rich  author  in- 
vites flattery.' 

421.  This  verse  occurs  also  in 
Sat.   I,  2,  13,  where,  however,  it 
is  not  necessary  to  the  sense,  as 
it  is  here. 

422.  unctum :  a  rich  morsel.  — 
ponere :  as  a  host  places  a  good 
dinner  before  his  guests. 

423.  levi :  i.e.,  a  poor  man  who 
is  so  lacking  in  self-respect  as  to 
be  willing  to  profit  by  such  help.  — 
The  object  of  eripere  is  to  be  sup- 
plied from  pro  paupere.  —  artis  : 
'lawsuits    that    bind    him    tight.' 


ing  to  write  witfibut  sufficient 
training  is  illustrated  in  Epist.  2, 
I,  114  ff.  by  a  comparison  with 
trades  and  professions,  in  vss. 
379  ff.  by  a  comparison  with  the 
players  in  games  of  skill,  and 
here  by  a  reference  to  the  practice 
needed  for  success  in  the  Pythian 
games.  —  cursu :  in  the  foot  race, 
from  which  so  many  figures  have 
been  drawn.  —  tulit  fecitque :  i.e.f 
both  passive  and  active  prepara- 
tion. —  puer :  '  from  boyhood.'  — 
Pythia  cantat :  cf.  coronari  Olym- 
pia,  Epist.  I,  I,  50.  Musical  con- 
tests were  a  regular  part  of  the 
games.  —  extimuit :  i.e.,  '  has  en- 
dured discipline  from  which,  at 
the  time,  he  shrank.' 

416.  mine  satis  est:  'but  now- 
adays poets  are  satisfied  with  their 
own  approval  and  think  courage 
is  the  only  quality   necessary  to 
writing.' 

417.  occupet  .  .  .  scabies:  'the 
devil   take   the   hindmost.'     The 


2,  3>  424] 


V    A^  I 

HORATT 


. 


litibus  implicitum  ;  mirabor,  si  sciet  inter- 
125    noscere  mendacem  verumque  beatus  amicum. 

,  Tu  seu  donaris,  seu  quid'  donare  voles  cui, 
*'  v  nolito  ad  versus  tibi  factos  ducere  plenum 

laetitiae  :  clamabit  enim  '  pulchre  !  bene  !  recte ! 

^  L  r  . 

/  pallescet  super  his ;  etiam  stillabit  amicis 
430    ex  oculis  fofe^m,  saliet,  timcfet  pede  terram. 
Vt  qui  conduct!  plorant  in  funere,  dicunt 
et  faciunt  prope  plura  dolentibus  ex  animo,  sic 
derisor  vero  plus  laudatore  movetur. 
Reges  dicuntur  multis  urgere  culullis  ^^X*" 

VdCkAfl  jr 

[This  is  Bentley's  conjecture.   The   ' 


;. 


reading  of  the  Mss.,  afrt's,  cannot 
be  justified  by  atra  cura.~] 

424.  inter  .  .  .  noscere  :  cf.  Sat. 
2,  3,   117   f.,   unde  .  .  .  octoginta; 
Epist.  2,  2, 93.     It  is  to  be  remem- 
bered that  to  the  Roman  feeling  the 
difference  between  the  juxtaposi- 
tion of  two  words  and  their  compo- 
sition into  a  single  word  was  much 
less  distinct  than  it  is  in  English. 
The  habit  of  reading  from  print 
prevents  us  from  perceiving  actual 
composition  in  such  a  phrase,  for 
example,  as  not  at  all. 

425.  beatus:  'in   his  self-satis- 
faction.' 

426.  donaris:  =  donaveris;    'if 
-you  already  have  some  person  who 
is  under  obligation  to  you.' 

427.  tibi  factos : '  the  verses  that 
you,  his  host  and  benefactor,  have 
made.' 

429.  super  his :  < at  this  or  that 
passage,'  which  is  intended  to  ex- 
cite terror. 


430.  saliet :  as  an  expression  of 
joy,  when  that  is  the  proper  emo- 
tion. —  tundet. .  .  terram  :  when  he 
hears  of  the  wickedness  of  the  vil- 
lain of  the  drama.  —  All  this  is,  of 
course,  a  humorous  exaggeration 
of  natural    expressions    of   emo- 
tion. 

431.  conduct! :  for  hire.   There 
are  various  allusions  to  the  custom 
of  hiring  women  (praeficae)   to 
accompany  a   funeral   procession 
with  cries  of  grief.     The  masculine 
is  used  in  order  that  the  phrase 
may  be  more  directly  applicable  to 
the  flattering  friend. 

432.  ex  animo :  with  dolentibus, 
contrasting  with  conducti. 

433.  derisor :  /.(?.,  '  the  man  who 
is  pretending  to  admire,  but  is  in 
his  heart  laughing  at  the  poet  for 
being  so  easily  fooled.' —  movetur : 
'  makes  a  greater  show  of  emotion,' 
as  already  described. 

434.  reges :  this  is  like  the  allu- 
sion in  Sat.  i,  2,  86,  regibus  hie 


234 


EPISTVLAB 


3,  44* 


435    et  torquere  mero  quern  perspexisse  laborant, 
an  sit  amicitia  dignus :  si  carmina  condes, 
nunquam  te  fallent  -animi  sub  v^lpe 
Quintilio  si  quid  recitares,  '  corrige 
hoc,'  aiebat,  '  et  hoc ' :  melius  te  posse  negares 

440    bis  terque  expertum  frustra,  delere  iubebat 
et  male  tornatos  incudi  reddere  versus. 
Si  defendere  delictum  quam  vertere  malles, 


1 


mos  est,  but  neither  custom  is  else- 
where mentioned. 

435.  torquere  mero :  cf.  Epist. 
I,  1 8,  38,  note.  This  is  the  gen- 
eral idea  which  is  expressed  in 
the  saying  in  vino  veritas.  — 
laborant :  are  anxious,  are  striv- 
ing. 

437.  fallent:  /'.<?.,  'you  need  not 
use    such    means    as    these,    for 
your  flatterer  will  reveal   himself 
surely  enough.'  —  sub  vulpe :  the 
allusion  is  to  the  fox  who  flattered 
the  raven  in  order  to  get  the  bit  of 
cheese   (Phaedr.    I,    13),  keeping 
his    real  purpose   (animi)  out  of 
sight  (latentes).     The  phrase  sub 
vulpe  is  therefore  a  concise  expres- 
sion for  '  as  the  fox  hid  his  purpose 
in  his  heart.' 

438.  Quintilio :   the  abruptness 
of  the  transition  gives  a   strong 
adversative  force  ;  '  Quintilius,  on 
the   other  hand,   will    speak    his 
mind  plainly.'     This  is  the  Quin- 
tilius Varus  whose  death  Horace 
mourned  in  the  noble  ode,  Carm. 
I,  24,   attributing   to   him   incor- 
rupt a   Fides  nudaque  Veritas.  — 
recitares:   of  the  past,  as  aiebat, 


iubebat  show,  not  an  ordinary  un- 
fulfilled condition. 

439.  negares  :  a  condition  with- 
out si  expressed,  but  dependent 
upon  si  of  vs.  438,  which  is  again 
expressed  in  vs.  442. 

441.  'If,  on  a  second  or  third 
attempt,  the  verses  prove  incapable 
of  improvement,  then  they  must 
be  stricken  out  and  the  thought 
must   be   expressed   in  some  en- 
tirely new  form,  as  a  metal  worker 
puts  a  piece  of  work  that  cannot 
be  properly  finished  back  upon  the 
anvil  and  begins  all  over  again.' 
The  finishing  of  the  metal   work 
was  sometimes  done  on  the  lathe, 
and  male  tornatos  means  'which 
come  out   badly  in  the  finishing 
process.'     Such    work   would   be 
taken  back  to  the  anvil  (incudi), 
to  be  forged  over  again. 

442.  vertere :     to     change,    to 
amend.     In    this    general    sense 
vertere  needs  some  additional  de- 
fining phrase,  usually  in  with  the 
accus. ;  here  the  definition  is  al- 
ready given  by  defendere  delictum. 
[  It  is  quite  impossible  that  there 
should   be  any    connection   with 


235 


3»  443] 


HORATI 


3jft»*^ 

inern, 


.^. 


nullum  ultra  verbum  aut  operam  insumebat  ina 
quin  sine  rivali  teque  et  tua  solus  amares. 

445    Vir  bonus  et  prudens  versus  r^prenenaet  ine 
,,-^culpabit  duros,  incomptis  adline];  a.tfum 
transverso^calar^o^signum,  ambitiosa  recidet 
ornamenta,  parum  claris  lucem  dare  coget, 
arguet  ambigue  dictum,  mutanda  notabit,  -    , 

450    net  Aristarchus,  nee  dicet,  '  cur  ego  amicum 
offendam  in  nugis  ? '     Hae  nugae  seria  ducent 
in  mala  derisum  semel  exceptumque  sinistre. 


•vertere    stilum,    as    many    good 
editions  say.] 

443.  inanem:  predicate;  to  no 
effect. 

444.  sine  rival! :  with  solus ;  the 
phrase  is  used  by  Cic.  (ad  Q.  Fr. 
3,  8,  4)  as  if  it  were  proverbial. 

445-449.  The  attitude  of  the 
frank  and  competent  critic,  which 
has  been  outlined  in  the  reminis- 
cence of  Quintilius  Varus,  is  here 
defined  in  more  general  terms, 
with  the  vir  bonus  et  prudens  sub- 
stituted for  Quintilius  and  with 
future  tenses  instead  of  imperfects. 
The  process  of  revision  is  illus- 
trated in  details  which  are  un- 
doubtedly drawn  from  Horace's 
own  experience  and  practice  and 
which  therefore  reveal  to  us  some- 
thing of  his  method  of  work. 
The  faults  selected  for  illustration 
are  those  which  Horace  has  es- 
pecially endeavored  to  avoid ; 
versus  inert es  (flat,  lacking  in 
vigor  of  expression),  duros  (harsh 
in  sound  and  rhythm),  incomptis 


~w   V 

(ill-arranged  in  order  of  thought), 
ambitiosa  (aiming  too  directly  at 
effect),  parum  claris  (words  which 
do  not  sufficiently  express  the 
thought),  ambigue  dictum  (phrases 
which  are  capable  of  more  than 
one  interpretation).  Some  of 
these  have  parallels  in  Epist.  2,  2, 
122  f.  There  is  a  careful  varia- 
tion in  the  verbs  also ;  reprehen- 
det,  culpabit,  arguet  are  general, 
adlinet  atrutn  signum,  recidet, 
lucem  dare  coget  are  more  spe- 
cific. 

450.  Aristarchus :  the  famous 
Homeric  critic,  who  lived  in  Alex- 
andria in  the  second  century  B.C. 
His  name  had  become  typical  of 
the  severe  critic. 

451-452.  hae  nugae:  < these 
things  which  you  call  trifles.1  — 
derisum  semel :  the  poet  who  has 
v  once  been  ridiculed  in  public  for 
faults  which  may  be  in  themselves 
trifling  has  suffered  a  loss  of  repu- 
tation from  which  he  can  scarcely 
recover. 


236 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,  3.  460 


155 


Vt  mala  quern  scabies  aut  morbAis  regius  urget, 
aut  fanaticus  error  et  irac'unda  Diana, 
vesa'num  titigisse  timent  fugiuntque  poetam 
qui  sapiunt :  agitant  pueri  incautique  sequuntur. 

-Hie,  dum  sublimis  versus  ructatur  et  errat, 
si  velutilneYulis  intentus  decidit  auceps 
in  p*M&um  foveamve,  licet  '  succurrite  '  longum 
clamet  '  io  cives,'  non  sit  qui  tollere  curet. 


453-476.  <  Allow  me,  in  conclu- 
sion, to  hold  up  to  you  the  picture 
of  the  kind  of  poet  you  should  try 
not  to  be  —  the  crazy  fool,  who 
thinks  himself  inspired.' 

453.  morbus  regius  :  this  phrase 
embalms  two  popular  errors,  that 
jaundice  was  a  contagious  disease 
and   that   it   was   somehow  espe- 
cially connected  with  kings  or  with 
the  rich  ;    to  account  for  the  latter 
various  fanciful  explanations  were 
given. 

454.  fanaticus  error:  the   fran- 
tic dancing  of  the  priests  of  Bel- 
lona   (Sat.    2,    3,    223,    gaudens 
cruentis),   who    went    about    the 
streets  cutting  themselves  in  frenzy 
and  begging  from  the  passers-by. 
The  word  fanaticus  (from  fanuni) 
was  used  especially  of  the  priests 
and  worship  of  Bellona  and  Cy- 
bele.    —    Diana:   as   moon  god- 
dess, whose  beams  were  supposed 
to  cause  lunacy  (luna). 

455-   vesanum:  =  insanum. 

456.  qui  sapiunt:  =  sapient 'es ; 
subject  of  timent  fugiuntque  and 
contrasted  with  incauti.  —  agi- 
tant: at  the  beginning  of  the 


clause  with  adversative  effect.  The 
picture  of  the  poet  in  the  r61e  of 
the  madman,  tormented  by  street 
boys  (cf.  Sat.  I,  3,  133  ff. ),  while 
the  more  reckless  of  the  people 
follow  behind  to  look  on,  and  the 
cautious  and  respectable  citizens 
cross  to  the  other  side  of  the 
street,  is  highly  effective  in  its 
ridicule. 

457.  sublimis:   'with  his  head 
in  the  air.' 

458.  merulis  intentus :  this  reads 
like    an    allusion    to   some  well- 
known   stofy,   but  no  such  story 
has  come  down  to  us. 

459-460.  longum :  « so  as  to  be 
heard  afar.'  —  non  sit :  the  gram- 
matical construction  is  si  .  .  .  de- 
cidit) licet  .  .  .  clamet)  non  sit; 
the  indicative  of  the  condition 
would  naturally  be  followed  by  an 
indicative  non  est  in  the  conclu- 
sion, but  the  concessive  clause  licet 
.  .  .  clamet  comes  in  and  forms  a 
new  protasis,  under  the  influence 
of  which  the  apodosis  takes  a  sub- 
junctive ;  if  '  he  falls  into  a  well 
even  though  he  should  cry  out,  n< 
one  would  help  him.' 


•37 


HORATI 


Si  curet  quis  opem  ferre  et  demittere  fundm,* 
'gin'  scis  an  prudens  hue  se  proiecerit  atque 
servari  nolit?'  dicam,  Sicuttque  poetae  # 
narrabo^intefiiutli.     Deus  immortalis  haberi 
465    dum  cupit  Empedocles,  ardentem  frigidus  Aetnam 


470 


ythsiluit.     Sit  ius  liceatque  perire  poetis. 
Invitum  qui  servat,  idem  facit  occidenti. 
Nee  semel  hoc  fecit,  nee,  si  retractus  erit,  iaro 
net  homo  et  ponet  famosa^jaaortis  amorem. 
Nee  satis  apparet,  cur  versus  f  actitet ;  utrurn 
minxerit  in  patrios  cineres,  an  triste  bidental 


461-463.  '  For,  as  I  should  point 
out  to  any  zealous  rescuer,  most 
probably  he  doesn't  want  to  be 
rescued.'  —  dicam:  apodosis  to 
siquiscuret. —  Siculi  poetae:  Em- 
pedocles of  Agrigentum,  philoso- 
pher, poet,  and  statesman  of  the 
fifth  century  B.C.  About  his  life 
and  death  various  legends  grew 
up,  the  one  of  widest  currency 
being  this,  that  he  threw  himself 
into  the  crater  of  Aetna.  The  best 
thing  to  be  said  of  this  story  is  that 
it  furnished  the  theme  for  Matthew 
Arnold's  '  Empedocles  on  Etna.' 

464.  deus  immortalis :  this  was 
one  of  the  motives  ascribed  to  him 
for  the  deed. 

465.  frigidus  :   it  is  possible  that 
this  is  an  allusion  to  teachings  of 
Empedocles  (who  was  a  physicist), 
in  which   he   identified   life  with 
heat.     But  the  allusion  would  be 
rather  obscure.     It  is  more  likely 
to  be  '  in  cold  blood,'  for  the  con- 
trast with  ardentem. 


467.  idem . .  .  occidenti :  *  does 
the  same  thing  as  killing  him ' ;  i.e.t 
it  is  just  as  bad  to  prevent  him 
from  dying  when  he  wants  to  die, 
as  to  kill  him  when  he  wants  to 
live.  The  construction  with  the 
dative  is  rare,  but  is  found  in  Lu- 
cret. ;  cf.  also  the  abl.  after  «//>/j. 
This  is  the  only  spondaic  hexame- 
ter in  Horace. 

468-469.  '  And  it  will  do  no 
good  to  save  him  ;  he  has  tried  it 
before,  and  he  likes  the  notoriety.' 

470.  nee  satis  apparet :  i.e., '  we 
don't  know  the  cause  of  his  poetic 
madness,  but  the  fact  is  plain.' 
—  cur  versus  f  actitet:  this  is  ex- 
pressed as  if  it  were  identical  with 
madness. 

471-472.  triste  bidental :  a  spot 
struck  by  lightning,  which  was 
therefore  considered  sacred  (/r/j- 
te)  and  was  consecrated  by  a  sac- 
rifice of  bidentes  (esp.  sheep).  It 
was  also  surrounded  by  a  wall,  and 
any  one  who  should  remove  this 


EPISTVLAE 


[2,3,476 


475 


moverit  incest^s  :  certe  furit,  ac  velut  ursus 
obiectos  ca"veae  valuit  si  frangere  clathros, 

indoctum  doctumque  f ugat  recitator  acerbus ; 

•&*• '-  •  • ,  •          ,          , 

quern  vero  afripliit,  tenet  occiditque  legendo,^  ^ 

non  missura  cutem,  nisi  plena,  cruoris,  hirudo. 


would   be  unclean  (incestus).  —      to  education,  if  only  he  can  find  a 


certe :  '  at  any  rate,  whatever  the 
oause,  he  is  certainly  mad.' 

474.  indoctum  doctumque :  a  hu- 
morous variation  on  pueri  puellae, 
et  pueros  et  anus ;  the  mad  poet 
will  make  no  distinction  according 


hearer.   —   fugat :  cf.  the  story  of 
Ruso,  Sat.  i,  3,  86  ff. 

476.  The  two  objects,  that 
which  is  compared  and  that  with 
which  it  is  compared,  are,  as  often 
identified  in  the  expression. 


-  i „«. u    ....--,  _o* 

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